YouTube launched in 2005 as a video sharing platform, and was acquired by Google (now Alphabet) in 2006. It has built an entire community of creators that run channels dedicated to topics like gaming, tech reviews, and beauty. It also houses news videos and entertainment such as music videos, movie trailers, and clips from late-night TV shows. YouTube’s rapid growth has not been without problems. YouTubers typically make money from ads that run in front of their videos, but if they break the platform’s rules, their channels and videos can be demonetized. Executives and moderators have worked to combat harassment, misinformation, terrorist propaganda, hate content, and other abuse. The Verge runs two YouTube channels, The Verge and Verge Science.
Splice got itself in some trouble a couple weeks ago when it issued a YouTube copyright strike against Krystle Delgado, a music attorney who showed one of the company’s sample licenses on screen. Splice wised up and retracted the strike last week, CEO Kakul Srivastava tell me. “We fundamentally support the rights of creators to express themselves – even if we disagree,” she wrote in an email to Delgado.
For her part, Delgado confirmed that the strike was indeed retracted by YouTube, and tells me that she wishes she could have spoken to to Srivastava directly before Splice’s lawyers escalated the situation.
As always, I will remind everyone that copyright law is the only functional speech regulation on the internet, and using it to chill speech or block criticism never tends to go well!
Creators like MKBHD, Logan Paul, Kai Cenat, Pokimane, and Valkyrae will vie for $1,000,000, according to MrBeast. He says the video will go live on Saturday.
In June, MrBeast posted a group photo featuring the creators in the competition — there are a lot more that I didn’t name here!
According to Not a Tesla App, the 2024.26 update in testing has features like parental controls that limit speed and acceleration or notify about late-night drives, an AQI symbol for poor local air quality, and scheduled charging.
It also adds built-in apps for Amazon Music and YouTube Music streaming in the US if you have Premium Connectivity or an active Wi-Fi connection.
Today the company rolled out an expanded takedown requests process for AI content following its initial announcement back in November.
But requesting removal doesn’t guarantee YouTube will comply. The company says it will consider things like whether the content could be mistaken as real and whether it’s parody or satire.
YouTube is experimenting with the ability to search for videos via Google Lens, with a “small percentage” of Android users being enrolled to test the feature.
The description says tapping the Lens button in the YouTube search bar will retrieve videos based on the picture you snap — which doesn’t sound particularly useful but might provide some entertainment value.
[support.google.com]
In addition to announcing wider availability of its thumbnail testing tool, YouTube is launching its skip feature it started testing last month. You can learn more details on that and a few other features (including creator QR codes) in this video.
The video “We Schooled Hundreds of Teachers” was funded in part by Stand Together, an organization founded by right-wing billionaire Charles Koch, reports Fast Company.
The video profiles Ron Clark Academy, a private school in Atlanta. For decades, the Koch family has worked to undermine public schools. “Education alternatives” are one of Stand Together’s key issues.
And yet, Matty Benedetto has amassed millions of subscribers with his Unnecessary Inventions. Tune into my new video series, Full Frame: Creators, where I spend a day with a creator to see how they have found success on the internet.
The business behind Unnecessary Inventions’ millions of followers
And how a modern-day inventor became a successful creator.
Hank Green is mad about the price of YouTube Premium, because it’s more expensive than Premium is everywhere else. The reason why is all about buttons and links and app store commissions, and you definitely don’t need Rocket Money to solve this problem, but Green is right about the bigger point here.
The lesson, as always: listen to Hank Green.
While the issue seems fixed today, Reddit users reported that and other problems, like videos that couldn’t be unmuted, in a thread spotted by 9to5Google. The solution was apparently disabling ad blockers. We saw the same behavior at The Verge.
It’s not clear if this was related to YouTube’s ongoing crackdown on ad blockers, or problems with the ad blockers themselves.
The app’s “Now Playing” screen has a gradient background now, as 9to5Google spotted. Also, the three tabs at the bottom aren’t on a visually separate bar anymore, though you can still swipe up to reveal them.
If you don’t see it at first, try swiping the app closed from the app switcher and relaunching — worked for me.
Remember that 15-year-old Tolkien fan movie that Warner Bros. pulled from YouTube last week for sharing the same name as its upcoming Lord of the Rings: The Hunt for Gollum title? Well, it’s back!
Adrian Webster, who played Aragorn in the fan-made film, told IGN:
“Perhaps it was an automated copyright block due to the same title. It’s not quite clear. Anyway, we’re happy it’s back online again just now.”
Some YouTube Premium subscribers can now jump to the most-watched part of a video, only in the YouTube app, by double-tapping the right side of the screen (which normally skips ahead 10 seconds), then tapping a “Jump ahead” button that appears, according to 9to5Google.
To see if you have the feature and enable it, go to Settings > Try experimental new features.
Disney Plus has never hosted “Dad Baby” — likely because it depicts Bluey’s dad Bandit pretending to give birth to his daughter Bingo — but the entire episode is now available to watch online via the official Bluey YouTube channel.
Despite Dad Baby’s cult status, it's actually one of several episodes of the Australian children’s TV show hit with censorship.
You can now preview thousands of audiobooks from the Google Play Books channel on YouTube — in addition to the previews already available in the Play Store. Google has also expanded its selection of free nonfiction ebooks for kids.