Twitter launches video app Vine

Twitter today released its rival to Instagram a video sharing service called Vine, which allows users to create and share short six second looping videos.

The application is expected to have significant potential for brands and marketers given the growing smart-phone penetration in markets like Australia, where usage has reached more than 37%.

Vine can be integrated with other major social media platforms, including both Facebook and Twitter. Vine was set to launch as a standalone video-sharing start-up before being bought by Twitter in October 2012.

Twitter says the six second limit on video is a deliberate feature, much like its 140 character limit on tweets, and is designed to force users to be creative.