One of the most popular social platforms globally, TikTok has been accused of copying its biggest rival after developers gave a completely new makeover to the app. TikTok’s new profile layout looks quite similar to the profile layout used by Instagram.
The new profile change was rolled out to few users as part of early tests, was spotted by New York Times journalist Taylor Lorenz. “Looks like TikTok is redesigning user profiles to look almost exactly like Instagram,” Lorenz tweeted on Monday.
Looks like TikTok is redesigning user profiles to look almost exactly like Instagram (new design vs old) pic.twitter.com/uQAHPwaZoh
— Taylor Lorenz (@TaylorLorenz) February 3, 2020
Though the app was launched in 2016, TikTok was one of the most popular apps of the past decade with more than 1.5billion downloads. Owned by Zhang Yiming, China’s ninth richest man, the app is beloved by teens and pre-teens, who watch and share short videos centred on music and meme-based humour.
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In a statement to The Verge, TikTok said, “We’re always looking for ways to improve the user experience on TikTok. We are currently testing profile designs and functionality to ultimately give users more ways to personalize and engage with their profiles.”
In the frantic bids to win over more users, copying the concepts and ideas of competitors has become a trend for social networks. Instagram itself isn’t a stranger to copying. Previously, Instagram Stories famously took Snapchat’s entire model of ephemeral content.
It is not yet official from TikTok that whether the app is going to roll out the Instagram-like design to all of its users. TikTok is currently experimenting with many more features. According to the sources, the app is reported to be working on a new curated feed similar to Snapchat’s Discover. The upcoming feed will be introduced to boost the advertising revenue on TikTok. It will not remove the current feed on TikTok but it is expected to work as an additional one.