TikTok quietly launches a microdrama app called “PineDrama”

TikTok has quietly released a new standalone short drama app called PineDrama in the US and Brazil. The app provides access to mini-dramas, which are bite-sized TV shows that can be watched in a series of one-minute episodes. Think of TikTok, but every video you come across is a short episode of a fictional story.

PineDrama is available on iOS and Android. It’s currently free and ad-free, although that may change in the future.

The news was first reported by Business Insider.

You can find content through the app’s Discover tab, where you can sort All or Trending dramas, or through endless vertical recommendations tailored to your taste. PineDrama features a variety of genres, including thriller, romance, family, and more. Examples of popular shows include “Love at First Bite” and “The Officer Fell for Me.”

The app features a “Viewing History” section where you can go back to the various series you watch. There is also a “Favorites” section where you can save the dramas you like the most. You can also share your thoughts with other viewers in the comments section and enter a full-screen viewing experience that gets rid of the caption and sidebar.

The move comes as TikTok launched a “TikTok Minis” section in its app late last year, where users can watch mini-dramas. With the launch of PineDrama, TikTok is competing with popular micro-drama platforms like ReelShort and DramaBox. Although the mini-drama industry has not been very popular until recent years, it is on track to reach $26 billion in annual revenue by 2030, as reported by Variety.

Short story telling hasn’t always worked, even with notable support. In 2020, Jeffrey Katzenberg, co-founder of DreamWorks and former Disney executive, launched a short-form streaming platform called Quibi with $1.75 billion in funding. The platform showed sub-10-minute episodes featuring famous Hollywood actors, but it failed to attract interest and was shut down after six months.

ReelShort and DramaBox succeeded where Quibi failed because while Quibi tried to compress Hollywood television into shorter episodes, ReelShort and DramaBox created low-budget stories that hooked viewers within the first few seconds, followed by ongoing adventures, all featuring non-union talent. In addition, they target fans of romantic and revenge thrillers, while Quibi tried to target everyone.

TikTok is now looking to replicate that success with PineDrama. The company already dominates the short-form social media space and is now aiming to take on another media category.