Google Discover Feed Starts Surfacing TikTok-Style Short Videos: Report

Google Discover’s new feature seems to have a limited availability so far

By Tanishka Sodhi | Updated: 26 August 2020 15:15 IST

Google Discover Feed Starts Surfacing TikTok-Style Short Videos: Report

Google’s Discover feed is showcasing short videos from apps like Trell and Tangi

Highlights

Google Discover is reportedly showing users TikTok-style short videos
The showcased videos are from apps like Trell and Tangi
Google Discover’s new feature seems to have limited availability so far

Google Discover, the search giant's feed of relevant information, has reportedly started showing a collection of TikTok-style short videos as part of a test. With TikTok in the process of getting banned in several countries, companies have been rushing to push out alternates to the app, and it looks like Google is the latest to join the race. Google Discover feed is said to showcase videos from popular short-form video sharing apps like Trell and Tangi right now.

As per a report by 9to5Google, the short videos open on the device's Web browser directly when tapped. The source's logo is visible on the top left corner and the video name appears at the bottom. There are also controls to mute, unmute, or share the videos. The new feature has a progress indicator as well. You can also hide any video from the overflow menu.

The feature seems to have a limited availability so far, with just one user reporting to have seen it. We were unable to verify its existence. Google hasn't announced anything on the official rollout as of yet.

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As mentioned earlier, these videos on Google Discover are reportedly taken from Trell, an Indian TikTok competitor, and Tangi, that features 60-second video clips.

Google Discover is accessible on Android smartphones or via the Google app for iOS. It shows users topics and news around items that are of interest to them - from sports to weather.

Companies have been rushing to introduce apps that can be replacements for TikTok, which gained global popularity. India banned the app in June, and the US also passed an executive order for the same. Facebook-owned Instagram recently launched Reels, a 15-seconds video-making app. Snapchat too, has been testing a new feature that lets you add music to the videos you record and send, while Facebook has been testing a new Short Videos feature within its main app as well.

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