14 DAY TRIAL // YouTube is preparing a new change to its system, this time setting eyes on the way users communicate. The company will retire the inboxes of Channel owners and will replace them with a new messaging system that seeks to cut down on spam and general clutter.
“Whether you’re Epic Rap Battles of History and swimming in feedback from fans, or you’re just starting up your channel, you can now connect with your fans faster and more easily through new messaging and commenting features rolling out this week,” YouTube explains, adding that this is part of a larger goal to offer users everything they need to connect with fans from all over the world.
The new messaging system will come with threaded conversations to make it easier to follow the ongoing chats. Fans will also find it easier to contact content creators by going to the channel’s “About” tab, clicking the “Send message” button and typing in the message.
Better yet, the new message system comes with spam detection to keep out the unwanted messages and the mean trolls.
“These new messaging features will replace the old inbox, which will go into read-only mode starting today. Don’t worry, you’ll still be able to read and download all of your inbox messages, along with your contacts, for the next few months, but you won’t be able to send or receive anything new,” YouTube explains.
Another big update that’s coming for YouTube users concerns the comments section. For instance, you’ll be able to choose to only view comments from your subscribers, to check for popular comments across the channel or review comments from a specific video.
User feedback that requires reviewing can be viewed in the same place on the comments page, while a search box has been added to help users find comments that include various keywords or hashtags.
The last time YouTube made any changes to the commenting section, this affected users rather than content creators and the Internet was up in arms. Then, YouTube’s parent company forced everyone to have a Google account and to post comments under their Google+ names in an effort to keep trolls at bay under the impression that mean comments are often made under fake identities.
Needless to say, no one liked having Google tell them that they had to have a Google account to comment on YouTube and long-time fans of the platform asked the company to keep out of their business.