It’s no secret that TikTok has been working on a new photo-sharing app to compete with Instagram and grow its social media empire. While one may look at TikTok’s success and deduce the task will be a piece of cake if the purported name of the new app, “TikTok Notes,” is indeed correct, the company has a long way to go.
In recent days, several users on social media have shared screenshots of a TikTok notification they received informing them that “TikTok Notes, a new app for photo posts, is coming soon!” The message implies that photos shared to TikTok will be shared to TikTok Notes automatically when the app launches, but states that users can opt out of this if they wish.
“Your existing and future public TikTok photo posts will be shown on TikTok Notes,” the message reads in screenshots shared by users. “If you prefer not to share your public TikTok photo posts on TikTok Notes, turn this off now.”
The screenshots were spotted by TechCrunch, which also tracked down a marketing splash page at photos.tiktok.com. The URL is owned by TikTok, according to the outlet. Gizmodo was able to access the page on Tuesday morning. The page features a compilation of three photos with captions and the phrase “Opening in TikTok Notes” along with an “Open App” button, though the button currently doesn’t work.
Gizmodo reached out to TikTok on Tuesday morning for comment on the TechCrunch report but did not immediately receive a response.
In a response to TechCrunch, TikTok confirmed it is working on the app but added that it was not available yet. The company did not provide additional details.
“As part of our continued commitment to innovating the TikTok experience, we’re exploring ways to empower our community to create and share their creativity with photos and text in a dedicated space for those formats,” a company spokesperson told TechCrunch.
Last month, an app researcher uncovered that TikTok was working on a photo-sharing app, which it named “TikTok Photos” at the time. Although the references to the app at that time included a dubious icon that resembled the PayPal icon with TikTok colors, the name at least made sense. It was a TikTok for Photos.
“TikTok Notes” is just confusing. “Notes” is used to convey the presence of text, which seems a bit odd for a new platform that aims to rival Instagram. Speaking of Instagram, TikTok’s rival also has a feature with the “Notes” name called “Instagram Notes,” which are mini tweets that show up like a story in the messages section of the app.
Image: TikTok/Unsplash