What you need to know
- YouTube says that it is replacing its single “Trending” page with a new “Charts” for specific content categories (e.g., Music, Podcasts, Movie Trailers, Gaming).
- The change is believed to reflect how users currently discover trends via recommendations, search, and communities, moving away from one universal list.
- Alongside the suggested move, new features claim to help creators understand audience consumption and promote their content, comprising personalized ideas and a “Hype” feature.
Discovering content on YouTube is going to change soon as the streaming platform is making noticeable changes in the coming weeks, the company announced.
The YouTube team has announced in the accompanying community page post that YouTube will be removing the popular Trending page alongside the Trending Now list. Users can now find “most popular content” in specific categories on the new YouTube Charts.
Up until now, and ever since Google launched the Trending page back in 2015, viewers would find what was actually trending — a singular list of viral videos. However, the company notes that it is supposedly changing and users are said to be learning about trends through their recommendations, search suggestions, comments, and communities, rather than the Trending page or Trending Now list. And, this seemed to be the case for the last five years.
“So, we’re making updates to better match how people discover trending content today by shifting away from one all-encompassing Trending list towards category-specific charts that we’ll continue to invest in over time,” the YouTube team stated in the aforementioned post.
So, technically, instead of finding all types of content in a single Trending page, YouTube is diversifying through a new Charts feature. It means users will be able to explore charts for “Trending Music Videos, Weekly Top Podcast Shows, and Trending Movie Trailers.”
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The streaming platform is further assuring that more content categories to charts will be added over time. For instance, there will also be a Gaming Explore page for trending gaming videos.
Next to the new charts, users will also be able to see their personalized recommendations alongside non-personalized general content in the traditional Explore menu or through their subscription feed.
Helping Content Creators
Meanwhile, YouTube will also be helping creators to understand what’s being consumed by their audiences. Additionally, the “Inspiration” tab in YouTube Studio claims to give creators personalized ideas to help spot the “next big thing” for their channel.
And, to help the creators get their content a boost and get discovered, YouTube’s Hype feature comes into play. It is believed to let viewers “amplify fresh videos they love.” Also, artists on the rise will have a dedicated spot on the “Music Explore page.”
As mentioned, all these new YouTube Charts and features are supposedly taking effect in the coming weeks.
