Twitter is testing autoplay video feature on select iOS devices

Following the footsteps of Facebook, Twitter is currently testing an auto-play video feature on its iPhone and iPad apps. As a test, when a few iOS users in the US run the Twitter app, they will notice that videos are playing automatically. This test was first reported by Ad Age and explains that this attempt is a part of Twitter’s two-pronged test to see whether people are likely to watch a video when it starts automatically without hitting play as it does in Facebook as opposed to YouTube, where a user needs to click play as a compulsion to watch the video. Videos which play automatically include promoted video ads, videos uploaded by users through the native app and clips that are a part of the Amplify program, which allows companies like ESPN and the NFL post videos with pre-roll ads. However, those videos which originate in Vine, will not auto-play under the test run. A person familiar with the matter told Ad Age that in one part of the experiment, some users will see entire videos play automatically in a loop while in the other test, users will see a looping 6-second autoplay previews teasing the video. Both videos will play on mute and only when the user clicks on the video, will it expand to full screen and play with sound. With auto-play, companies are trying to grab the viewers attention. A video which plays automatically means that it will most likely be watched by the user. The report added that Autoplay can also help boost view numbers which turns out to be an ‘important metric for companies’ who are trying to get celebrities, publishers and brands to post videos to their pages. This way, Twitter hopes to make profits via video advertising. It also hopes to take on YouTube, which has dominated the video-sharing space for a long time now along with Facebook which is also trying to dethrone YouTube.