By Michaela Gordoni
YouTube is the only social media app that doesn’t have a direct messaging feature — so it’s testing it out.
A YouTube employee recently shared that YouTube is testing a way to share videos through direct messages on the platform, Mashable reported.
“We’re experimenting with a new feature that makes it easy for you to share videos you love (long-form, Shorts and live streams) and have conversations about them directly on the YouTube mobile app,” YouTube wrote in a post. “By messaging on YouTube, you accept that messages may be reviewed to ensure they follow our Community Guidelines. Community Guidelines apply to all content on YouTube, including on-platform video shares and messages.”
The same policies YouTube has for moderation on its videos and comments will also apply to its DMs.
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“Our systems may scan for content that is against these policies, such as content that could cause real-world harm, and we may review flagged content,” YouTube said.
The experiment is currently only available to users over 18 in Poland and Ireland. After testing, it may roll out to all users in the future. YouTube hasn’t revealed the timeframe for the test.
The feature will be available to app users. Once a video is shared, the contacted user may accept or decline the video and proceeding messages from the user.
Message notifications will appear alongside other notifications when a user taps the Notification bell icon. To share, you press the normal share button under a video, pick a contact from the list, and send it. Users may also unsend or delete messages by long-pressing a conversation and choosing what they want to remove, Phone Arena adds.
YouTube says that messaging is a highly requested feature.
YouTube had a way to privately share and discuss videos with certain users in 2017. Two years later, YouTube removed the feature.
Spotify rolled out messaging earlier this year, which it had abandoned in 2017, Inc. reported. And Amazon Music is testing “Fan Groups,” which allow Canadian users to talk about their favorite music.
YouTube’s DM feature could help content creators, as users share their favorite videos.
Last year, the company introduced YouTube Communities in efforts to be a more social platform. It allows users to create and engage in discussions. Subscribers can post content, react to others’ posts, and make comments. This helps creators and viewers feel more connected, according to TubeBuddy.
However, the communities are creator-managed. Direct messages would give anyone, anywhere, freedom and control of their conversations, as long as the chats stay in line with YouTube’s policies.
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