YouTube Lives Shorts On Smart TV Globally Today

YouTube Shorts display on TV (photo: Youtube Blog)

JAKARTA - YouTube continues to expand its short video content in rivaling TikTok, and announced on Monday, November 7, that YouTube Shorts is now rolling out on smart TV.

"As we introduced this new format, we optimize the experience for creators and mobile viewers. Today, we are expanding viewing access to Shorts to our fastest-growing platform, namely TV screens," said Chief Product Officer, YouTube and SVP, Google Neal Mohan in an announcement on the YouTube blog.

So, starting today global viewers who have a supporting smart TV will be able to enjoy this series of short, up to 60-second videos on a wider screen.

Today we’re bringing Shorts to our fastest growing surface: the TV screen. An incredible amount of thought has gone into bringing this mobile-first experience to the big screen. More on the @YouTube blog: https://t.co/8smsKaSXvc pic.twitter.com/U6vMHbm1sm

— Neal Mohan (@nealmohan) November 7, 2022

"While extending Shorts to TV may seem conceptually simple, the journey to get here is not as simple as it sounds," Neal further said.

The company said that in the final phase of the design, they made two prototypes to turn Shorts on TV, which is a simple and maximal prototype.

In the "simple" prototype, the cydebars and basic functionality to engage with Shorts. The "maximum" prototype provides more visible functionality, ranging from associated tags to comments and including opaque backgrounds with color samples.

When we tested this prototype with the community, we found out that people prefer the "maximum" version. It makes better use of the additional space for TV screens and the background of the color sample makes the experience feel more modern," Neal said.

As a precipitation launch earlier today, you will see an initial version with simplification of rail designs on the right side using a maximum prototype. However, YouTube promises to bring other functionalities in the future.

YouTube also revealed, for viewers who want to view Shorts on TV, they need a 2019 or later smart TV model and newer game consoles or streaming devices.