In June, The Information reported that both TikTok and Instagram were creating TV apps to extend their reach beyond mobile devices and into living rooms, where YouTube has already established a strong foothold. Instagram’s planned app is expected to showcase content like Reels, while TikTok’s TV application seeks to attract older viewers and capture connected TV’s higher advertising rates.
“YouTube has been more things to more people than any other platform,” observes Paul Verna, Vice President of Content at EMARKETER, highlighting the versatility that has made YouTube the model that other social platforms seek to emulate in the connected TV space.
YouTube’s success in bridging mobile and television viewing is demonstrated in recent Nielsen data. For May, the platform captured a 12.5% share of total TV usage, surpassing traditional media companies including Walt Disney (10.7%) and Netflix (7.5%).
“Not only did YouTube surpass Disney, but the gap has been widening,” Verna notes in the latest episode of EMARKETER’s “Behind the Numbers” podcast. “It’s one thing when it happens sporadically, but now it really seems to be a trend.” YouTube has maintained the top position for four consecutive months.
Challenges in Transitioning to Television
Despite the opportunity, social platforms face significant hurdles in their TV expansion. The vertical video format that dominates TikTok and Instagram presents complications on horizontally-oriented television screens.
“When these brands are established for a certain audience and on a certain device, which is a mobile device, it is very, very hard to make that leap,” Verna explains. He notes that previous attempts by Facebook (Facebook Watch) and Instagram (IGTV) to enter the connected TV space failed to gain traction despite significant investment.
Minda Smiley, Senior Analyst covering social media at EMARKETER, adds: “I think lately we’ve been hearing a lot of people talk about how people do watch YouTube Shorts on TV screens. As a society, we’ve become so accustomed to watching vertical videos.”
Creators Bridging Social and Streaming
Simultaneously, streaming services are forging partnerships with social media creators. Notable examples include YouTuber MrBeast launching “Beast Games” on Amazon Prime Video and children’s content creator Ms. Rachel licensing existing YouTube content to Netflix.
“There’s not really one roadmap or one way that we’re seeing both social networks and the streamers go about partnering with creators,” Smiley observes. “The vast majority of creators are smaller and their presence largely lives on social, and it will remain that way for quite some time.”
Marketing Implications
The distinction between social media and streaming content continues to blur, potentially affecting advertising strategies. As EMARKETER notes, some marketers report shifting away from trend-based content on platforms like TikTok toward more polished, episodic content.
“They’re creating more polished, premium ads that maybe work on TikTok, but also could work in a streaming environment where ads typically tend to be a bit more thought out,” Smiley says. “It might be harder to differentiate what a TikTok ad looks like versus what a Netflix ad looks like.”
Dragomir is a Serbian freelance blog writer and translator. He is passionate about covering insightful stories and exploring topics such as influencer marketing, the creator economy, technology, business, and cyber fraud.
In June, The Information reported that both TikTok and Instagram were creating TV apps to extend their reach beyond mobile devices and into living rooms, where YouTube has already established a strong foothold. Instagram’s planned app is expected to showcase content like Reels, while TikTok’s TV application seeks to attract older viewers and capture connected TV’s higher advertising rates.
“YouTube has been more things to more people than any other platform,” observes Paul Verna, Vice President of Content at EMARKETER, highlighting the versatility that has made YouTube the model that other social platforms seek to emulate in the connected TV space.
YouTube’s success in bridging mobile and television viewing is demonstrated in recent Nielsen data. For May, the platform captured a 12.5% share of total TV usage, surpassing traditional media companies including Walt Disney (10.7%) and Netflix (7.5%).
“Not only did YouTube surpass Disney, but the gap has been widening,” Verna notes in the latest episode of EMARKETER’s “Behind the Numbers” podcast. “It’s one thing when it happens sporadically, but now it really seems to be a trend.” YouTube has maintained the top position for four consecutive months.
Challenges in Transitioning to Television
Despite the opportunity, social platforms face significant hurdles in their TV expansion. The vertical video format that dominates TikTok and Instagram presents complications on horizontally-oriented television screens.
“When these brands are established for a certain audience and on a certain device, which is a mobile device, it is very, very hard to make that leap,” Verna explains. He notes that previous attempts by Facebook (Facebook Watch) and Instagram (IGTV) to enter the connected TV space failed to gain traction despite significant investment.
Minda Smiley, Senior Analyst covering social media at EMARKETER, adds: “I think lately we’ve been hearing a lot of people talk about how people do watch YouTube Shorts on TV screens. As a society, we’ve become so accustomed to watching vertical videos.”
Creators Bridging Social and Streaming
Simultaneously, streaming services are forging partnerships with social media creators. Notable examples include YouTuber MrBeast launching “Beast Games” on Amazon Prime Video and children’s content creator Ms. Rachel licensing existing YouTube content to Netflix.
“There’s not really one roadmap or one way that we’re seeing both social networks and the streamers go about partnering with creators,” Smiley observes. “The vast majority of creators are smaller and their presence largely lives on social, and it will remain that way for quite some time.”
Marketing Implications
The distinction between social media and streaming content continues to blur, potentially affecting advertising strategies. As EMARKETER notes, some marketers report shifting away from trend-based content on platforms like TikTok toward more polished, episodic content.
“They’re creating more polished, premium ads that maybe work on TikTok, but also could work in a streaming environment where ads typically tend to be a bit more thought out,” Smiley says. “It might be harder to differentiate what a TikTok ad looks like versus what a Netflix ad looks like.”
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