YouTube Hyperlinked Comments Getting A Wider Rollout on Mobile App

Highlights

• YouTube is expanding its hyperlinked comments feature.
• Users would be able to find related videos via clickable links in the comment section.
• Commenters cannot add or edit hyperlinks.
• The feature is currently only visible on YouTube mobile.

YouTube has been experimenting with some necessary but mostly unnecessary features that no one asked for.

From changing the position of the comments section to making ads unskippable to testing generative AI for auto-commenting, all these features do not particularly make life easier for a user.

The trend seems to continuing with the streaming platform testing other strange features. The latest we are hearing about it is the YouTube hyperlink comments.

According to multiple media reports, YouTube Hyperlinked comments are now appearing for more people than was noticed last time when the feature was being tested.

The feature is making the comments section look not only strange but also a bit spammy.

YouTube says it is a better way for you to find more videos about a particular topic.

In the YouTube Hyperlink comments feature, whenever a user posts a comment on a video, they get several related video links hyperlinked in the comment section.

The links appear in a blue hyperlink form with a small eyeglass icon, which indicates the text is clickable.

The streaming platform believes that this feature is a better way to “reduce friction” when users are trying to learn about a specific topic on the platform.

Users can click on the blue hyperlink that appears in their comments to go to a new search page. Meanwhile, the mini-player will stay as it is so that users can continue watching the original video as well.

A 9to5Google report reveals that a commenter cannot add or edit the hyperlinks.

In a Creator Insider announcement video, YouTube earlier said that creators on the platform would be able to remove hyperlinks from their videos if they want to. However, 9to5Google team reveals no such option is available for creators in the YT Studio as of now.

YouTube has been testing the hyperlinked comment feature since a trial run in 2023. It first appeared on limited videos on the platform on an experimental basis.

It is not clear what criteria YouTube is using to convert specific work tags into clickable hyperlinks in the comment section.

As of now, it seems to be randomly picked

In a recent Linus Tech Tips video, several hyperlink comments can be seen linked to other videos on the  Fallout 76 video topic.

Several commentators online have been critical of the feature so far calling it spammy.

9to5Google’s Damien Wilde also criticised the current execution as it appeared “eerily reminiscent of some of the scammy Chrome extensions that will laden your browser with ads on phrases and search terms by taking you to storefronts and shady websites. It also clogs up and creates a strange spammy look to what has been a fairly clean experience for a few years.”

The feature as of now is only visible on YouTube mobile as per reports.

You cannot obviously deny that getting related video links in the comment section can be useful when you are researching specific topics, but it appears YouTube has to work on execution as the current feature design makes it look like spam.

FAQs

Q1. What is the purpose of YouTube’s hyperlinked comments feature?

Answer. The streaming platform believes that this feature is a better way to “reduce friction” when users are trying to learn about a specific topic on the platform.

Q2. Can commenters add or edit hyperlinks in their YouTube comments?

Answer. Certain reports reveal that a commenter cannot add or edit the hyperlinks.

Q3. Where is the hyperlinked comments feature currently visible?

Answer. The feature as of now is only visible on YouTube mobile as per reports.

Q4. What are YouTube Hyperlink comments?

Answer. In the YouTube Hyperlink comments feature, whenever a user posts a comment on a video, they get several related video links hyperlinked in the comment section. The links appear in a blue hyperlink form with a small eyeglass icon, which indicates the text is clickable.

Also Read : YouTube’s New AI Comment Reply Feature Sparks Concerns

Also Read : YouTube Testing New Ad Skipping Feature, Removing Countdown Timer