TikTok today announced a new in-app authoring tool called TikTok Library, which the company hopes will make it easier for creators to access entertainment content and participate in trends. Initially, the TikTok Library will fill in a selection of content from GIPHY, including its collection of GIFs with sounds, known as GIPHY Clips.
TikTok says that over time, the company hopes to expand the TikTok Library with more content sources, audio and sounds, text templates, and other content from TikTok creators. However, the company declined to share what kind of future partners it might have in those jobs.
Launched as GIPHY Video in 2019, GIPHY Clips is now a way for entertainment partners such as TV and movie studios, game makers, record labels, sports leagues, news outlets, and more to share properly licensed content on the GIPHY platform. Over time, the feature has expanded to include thousands of content producers who want to leverage GIFs with sound (also known as short videos) to reach GIPHY’s hundreds of millions of daily active users. These GIPHY snippets can be shared anywhere on the web via links, as well as in messaging apps, in workplace tools like Slack, and through GIPHY’s developer toolset, the GIPHY SDK, and other third-party apps.
TikTok said that when launched, it will support GIPHY clip categories such as reactions, quotes, characters, and iconic moments. Reactions are those GIFs that capture someone’s original emotions, while quotes are memorable mantras and sayings from well-known people. The persona category can be anyone with fans, such as celebrities or athletes. Iconic moments are memorable moments like amazing sports competitions, awards ceremony speeches, and other big events.
A TikTok spokesperson said that in addition to the millions of GIFs in GIPHY’s broader database, the integration within TikTok will include part of the GIPHY Clips database in the tens of thousands. While TikTok already offers many creative tools in its social video app, the company says it will continue to look for new ways to help creators express themselves. This is what GIPHY integration is all about.
To use the feature, TikTok users will tap on the new “TikTok Library” icon on the sidebar of the app. Once inside the TikTok Library, users can scroll through popular content or use the search bar to find more specific content. When the user has selected what they want to use, they can clip it to the desired length and then return to the shooting page to continue capturing the video. TikTok said the library feature will first be rolled out in specific markets for Android, on iOS next week, and then expanded to more TikTok users around the world in the coming weeks.
