Tik Tok as the medium

By Gabrielle Jones

Tik tok is a user-friendly video sharing platform. Created by Byte Dance in 2016, a Beijing based company. Restricted to a time limit of 60 seconds to produce a video, Tik Tok forces its users to be creative and outgoing. Using ‘Real people’ making ‘real videos’ as their home page mentions. Tik Tok is an open interactive platform that has a large outlet for dancers, and skit creators. Those that participate on the platform are called content creators. When the combination of a music lip-syncing app and a short comedy skit add a bit of dancing, if they can all band together that would summarize a ‘Tik Tok’. Creators are able to edit: cuts, jumps, transitions and popular soundtracks to make videos as a form of entertainment. For the users that don’t already have an audience Tik Tok is the strongest video sharing platform because of its accessibility, popularity and unique algorithm. Tik Tok uses neo liberalistic tactics to show its users, the more active and engaged users create more content. The goal? To be featured on the ‘for you page’, efforts are teased with the carrot of popularity and large numbers associated with online success.

The strength in this argument is the combination of all previous applications in the past, Tik Tok helps further a better user experience and can be used and adapted as a whole. Tik Tok is used as an application, specific videos can be mentioned in conversation or casual reference. This is talking about Tik Tok as a form of a medium, that has been adapted from other similar apps in the past. The app is strictly limited to videos set under a time limit of sixty seconds, while photos can be additionally added it creates moving collages of pictures to create a video montage. Tik Tok was not the only attempt at a short video sharing platform that had an open demographic. Tik Toks former application model in comparison was Vine. A six second video sharing platform that allows users to create whatever their minds desire. The original app Vineintroduced the fast media sharing aspect, it gave a medium to mess with and emulate. The next attempt was a video sharing platform by the creator ‘ByteDance’ that Tik Tok craved to adapt and create their own application that emulated the similar features like, vertical scrolling and liking individuals, following users and building an online mass community. The app adds to user obliviousness by the remedial vertical scrolling. By advancing this original idea of the aspects and digital elements, Tik Tok was able to remind the viewer of the original medium. Which takes even more remediated actions within in the app, an example such as ‘musical.ly’ app has mimicked and better adapted, added skills to have a platform that allows its users to have ultimate editing control. Which just beat out Vine by 54 seconds.

The app is accessible, not only to its creators but also as a swipe up streamline of tailored videos. Similar to that of Youtube, yet exclusive in comparison, Tik Tok has a subscriber page yet it is called the ‘following page’. The app is accessible to those that only have a smart phone to create. The application includes a small film studio all in one that allows mass sharing. Anyone can add face filters, color filters and even green screen. A luxury that most average of people would not usually be able to afford to have a complete production studio in their pocket. Any user can snag audio that won’t get copyrighted, such as top #1 pop songs and save the audio files, and add it to their latest video. This ease of access and producing knowledge urges its users to remix and create more meme-able and sharable content. Tik Tok is organized by popular audio files. It is the only type of interactive video sharing and editing platform with such massive reach on the market that has so many active users. Used uniquely by the age demographic of 18–24 year olds at first has since evolved and opened its accessibility to younger kids and has even been able to spread its demographic all the way to 45–60 year old creators. Safe to say that anyone can Tik Tok.

With software advancing technology, including the popular algorithm that this application uses. If you see a video that you like, engage by liking and commenting you are more likely to see similar videos. Tik Toks algorithm, according to (celebrityaccess.com) “It seems that the ratio is 1 like for every 10 views in order to trigger the algorithm to show the video to more people.” With the algorithm the “platform has over 500 million active users worldwide” according to (Oberlo.com) within its first year. With such a large number of active users, it is easier now than ever to post a video and have it be seen by someone on Tik Tok. It is a unique platform that anyone of any age and demographic can participate and be a user on. The ‘for you page’ is tailored for you and your personal preferences. Tik Tok is a space that allows the applications algorithm to do what it does best, which adds your specific ‘likes and swipes’ to give you the best tailored streamlined videos using the knowledge it gains from your previously liked videos.

Tik Tok and its active users are baffling the competition with other large applications such as Twitter, Youtube and Instagram. Tik Tok has more active users in its first two years of production and launch combined than Twitter has in its 10+ years. The user is able to tell a moving story that can reach millions of people in 60 seconds, there is a time limit yet the content can include anything your imagination can create. A video about ferrets dancing, art teachers dressing up for school or choreographed dancing. If you have a specific preference for videos there is a special video preference for each niche and each niche subculture.

Videos in the description are separated and categorized by the popular hashtags. Using the most popular ‘Tik Toker’ on the app as of (02/2020) Loren Gray, with over 35 million Tik Tok followers, she has her own sub-niche on the app as to lip synching and comedic skits. They are usually visually appealing with two females on screen or just herself solely, lip synching to pre-specified audio. She is an active user and posts multiple times a week. As a style or reference icon for millions she has made large moves in her online career on the application.

For the users that don’t already have an audience Tik Tok is the strongest video sharing platform because of its accessibility, popularity and unique algorithm. These people have stayed consistent to become Tik Tok famous and have made a specific type of career out of recording current events as they are happening. Tik Tok is a huge platform that has the other competition shook, in numbers and in comedic timing. In reference to smaller Tik Toks that don’t have millions of views yet, here is a remix of the Keeping up with the Kardashians viral clips, that have been cut and curated to comment on the perfect moment. Which in the field that is being portrayed the ‘actors’ in the video prove that even doctors can Tik Tok.

On Tik Tok, dogs can make viral for you page worthy videos.

The ever-appealing algorithm to Tik Tok is why this new app it has such a massive uploading and sharing activity. What makes it so special is the algorithm makes the likelihood of a smaller Tik Tok user have the likelihood of getting their content seen because of the sub-niche culture and its hashtags. The algorithm is made to work to show the user similar tailored works using similar audio. The way the medium can tell a story. Tik Tok is the best quick video sharing platform because of its accessibility, popularity and unique algorithm. The accessible studio production elements help strengthen the believability that anyone can ‘Tik Tok’ and follow its core message to “Make your day.”

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