Mehul Reuben DasNov 02, 2022 11:10:02 IST
Remember Vine, the short-lived video-sharing platform that made the short-video format of content go viral? Well, it seems that Elon Musk is planning to revive the old platform and give it a second lease on life.
Elon Musk is planning to revive Vine and take on short-video platforms like TikTok. Musk may hire Logan Paul to lead the creative division of the business. Image Credit: AFP
Before there was TikTok and the countless knockoffs that it spawned before there was Musically, Instagram Shorts, or YouTube Shorts, Vine was the go-to app for quirky, and zany vertically shot short-form content. The difference between a platform like TikTok and Vine is that Vine was actually loved by the people, albeit for a short period of time.
Many of the most popular content creators of today actually came to the public limelight, thanks to Vine. Today, we know musicians like Shawn Mendes and video creators like Logan Paul, because of Vines.
Short and snackable video content was synonymous with Vine. Indian content creators like Bhuvan Bam, owe their success and popularity to Vine – hence the name, ‘BB Ki Vines’.
Twitter bought Vine back in 2012, just 5 months after the platform launched and became an overnight sensation. However, in 2016, Twitter pulled the shutter down on Vine, taking it off the market completely, mainly because of growing competition. It was a decision that surprised many, mainly because of how popular Vine was, in spite of the rising competition. There was also the fact that TikTok, one of Vine’s main competitors was paying Vine’s top creators to sign exclusive, multi-million dollar deals with them.
Taking to Twitter, Musk put up a poll, asking users whether he should revive Vine as a platform. Not only did a vast majority of the people respond with a resounding yes, but some of the biggest content creators on the internet like Mr Beast, also supported the idea.
Musk hasn’t confirmed whether or not he will bring back the platform that gave us some of the most celebrated social media influencers and creators. However, there are other rumours which suggest that he is already working on reviving the platform.
Logan Paul and Shawn Mendes are just two of the singers, actors and countless content creators that owe their careers to VIne. Image Credit: AFP
Evidently, Musk has already approached Logan Paul to run the platform and head the creative division. As per a few rumours, Musk and Paul are set to sign a $1 billion deal soon.
The situation right now is very conducive for Musk to revive a short-form video platform like Vine. Short videos have only exploded as a content form ever since Vine went out of the market, with TikTok having a major chunk of the market right now. However, because of the way content is moderated on TikTok and because of the platform’s proximity to the Chinese government, people usually distrust TikTok. And no matter how hard YouTube and Instagram try, people don’t want to see these platforms dabbling with short-form content. Instagram in particular has often drawn flack for imitating features from TikTok.
If Musk indeed relaunches Vine, irrespective of who leads it or who manages the platform, he will have struck gold for sure.
