Snapchat on Monday announced the launch of Spotlight, a new in-app feature that will function like TikTok and Instagram Reels.
‘Spotlight’ will show users the top snaps that have been submitted for consideration by the app’s more than 249 million daily users in a feed that they can swipe or tap through. Spotlight snaps will play in a continuous loop until users swipe to the next one.
It will provide an opportunity for Snap to expand the amount of entertaining content available to users. Previously, Snapchat users were earlier exposed to snaps posted by their friends or posted by publishers in the app’s Discover feature. ‘Spotlight’ will give users a centralized location where they can access an endless feed of user-generated content.
Spotlight will broaden connections among Snapchat users by enabling anyone to create a video that gets distributed on the platform. The short-form video “snaps” will be embellished with filters and augmented reality effects.
Snapchat will motivate users to submit clips for Spotlight consideration by offering a daily pool of more than $1 million to users who create entertaining snaps. The company will use a proprietary equation to determine payout based on how many views a snap gets in comparison to that of other highly viewed snaps.
Users have to be 16 or older to earn a payout. The company will offer daily payouts through at least the end of 2020 similar to TikTok and Facebook’s Instagram Reels, both of which have started programs that pay creators to post photos and video clips on their products.
“We designed Spotlight to entertain our community while living up to Snapchat values, with our community’s well being as a top priority,” said a statement from Snapchat parent firm Snap Inc.
Spotlight is being launched in the US, Canada, Australia, New Zealand, Britain, Ireland, Norway, Sweden, Denmark, Germany, and France, and in other markets later.
Snap said that all videos on Spotlight would be reviewed by human moderators before getting uploaded on the platform, in contrast with rivals which use automated systems and in many cases respond to inappropriate content or misinformation after the fact.
Spotlight will not include ads at launch, but a company spokesman said Snapchat expects it will introduce ads to the product in coming months.
