14 DAY TRIAL // It’s been a while since Google announced it would be changing things up with YouTube comments, and the new system is finally here.
The company is letting everyone know that YouTube comments have gone through a transformation. They will now be sorted better, pushing forward comments from people you know, messages that are meaningful through a new threated format and comments from Google+.
The updated system is built on the Google identity platform and if users haven't upgraded their channels, they can do so now.
As in the previous format, comments with many likes and replies will rank higher than others, but you’ll also be able to see messages from people you’re connected with in Google+ Circles, creators and popular personalities.
In addition, as mentioned, Google+ posts that link to videos or channels will also appear as comments on YouTube, and they’ll be easy to spot since they’ll be marked as “via Google+.”
Channel creators also have access to new moderation tools for comments on videos added and on the channel as a whole.
When leaving a comment on YouTube, it’s now possible to choose if to post the message on Google+ as well and whom to share it with. Furthermore, YouTube now offers the possibility to use rich text. By adding tags such as *bold*, _italics_ and –strikethrough- you’ll add some style to the comments.
Adding URLs is possible, as well. Outside links will appear as such, while YouTube video URLs will show as a link using the title of the video. Comments can be edited or deleted completely, while now it’s also possible to disable reshares and replies.
This is Google’s effort to trim out the useless comments, the trolls and to force some quality to the YouTube comments, an area that has been often made fun of since many of the messages are exceedingly immature.