The revelation comes alongside CEO Linda Yaccarino’s recognition of the platform’s ascension in the video domain. Spearheaded by owner Elon Musk’s vision of embracing a video-first approach, X has introduced many video-focused features since his tenure, including recent additions like audio and video calling capabilities for all users.
X Data, the platform’s official data-sharing account, divulged that video views surged by 35 per cent year-on-year, showcasing a remarkable increase of over one-third compared to the previous financial year. Moreover, total time spent on videos witnessed a substantial uptick of 17 per cent year-on-year, underlining users’ heightened engagement with video content on the platform.
The report further revealed that four out of every five user sessions now incorporate watching at least one video, signifying a notable shift towards video-centric engagement. CEO Yaccarino echoed this sentiment, affirming, “X is becoming a video-first platform,” in a reshared post.
Elon Musk’s strategic focus on amplifying video features has driven this growth trajectory. In May 2023, Musk announced an expansion for X Premium subscribers, allowing them to upload videos lasting up to two hours, with a maximum size of 8GB. Subsequently, in August, the platform introduced support for live videos, aligning its capabilities with industry counterparts like Facebook, YouTube, and Instagram. Musk also greenlit the option for verified users to download videos, provided the content creator enables the feature. Additionally, efforts to enhance the video recommendation algorithm and introduce an infinite scroll feature for seamless video browsing on the mobile app have symbolized Musk’s commitment to video-centric innovation.
However, X’s evolution isn’t confined solely to video enhancements. Reports suggest that the platform’s developers are diligently working on integrating passkey support into the Android app following its successful implementation on iOS earlier this year. This advancement aims to provide users with enhanced security measures, allowing them to bypass traditional password constraints and leverage biometric logins for account protection.
