google: Google may give more ‘importance’ to Instagram and TikTok videos – Times of India

Google is reportedly discussing with ByteDance and Facebook the possibility to integrate Instagram and TikTok videos to Google Search. The tech giant aims to finalise a deal with the social media platforms to bring in short format videos on its search engine.
If everything goes well, you’ll be able to look up Instagram and TikTok videos on Google Search using popular keywords.
If you try to look up Instagram or TikTok videos on Google right now, you’ll only see reuploads of the videos posted on YouTube or another third-party platform. But Google is trying to change that.
The Information reports that officials from the search giant are currently negotiating a deal with ByteDance and Facebook to get the data they need to index and rank videos from TikTok and Instagram on Search.

In a statement regarding this, a Google spokesperson told The Information that the company is always looking for new ways to organise information. “We help sites make their content discoverable and benefit from being found on Google, and they can choose how or whether their content appears in Search,” the spokesperson added.
Google started testing a new feature that showed TikTok and Instagram videos in Google Search on mobile in December 2020. The feature initially showed YouTube videos only, but it soon added videos from the other two platforms.
The company is still testing the feature in different regions and it might see a wider rollout if Google manages to strike a deal with ByteDance and Facebook. Google might also offer a similar feature in Search on desktop if things go as planned.