YouTube appears to have quietly rolled back a controversial change from earlier in the week that was met with derision and outrage globally.
YouTube appears to have quietly rolled back its controversial move to hide dislike counts on videos.
On Thursday, the platform said it was removing the number of dislikes “after lots of research, testing and consideration”.
Creators would still be able to view their dislikes for videos and livestreams, these would just not be visible to their viewers.
“Unfortunately, research teams at YouTube have found there is this whole other use of disliking a video that I have never experienced,” Creator Liaison at YouTube Matt Koval said as part of the announcement.
“Groups of users have been targeting the dislike button to drive up the count, turning it into something of a game with a physical scoreboard.”
The major change was met with derision and outrage and many said it went against YouTube’s promise to “give everyone a voice”.
Now it appears the backlash was so extreme the tech giant decided to quietly scrap the new move just days after it announced the change.
Although YouTube said it was bringing in the change, some videos that already had their dislike count removed have since had it reinstated, indicating the policy might be scrapped.
Screenshots showed users were unable to see dislikes for a video from prominent YouTuber Mr Beast several days ago, but this had been reinstated today.
News.com.au has contacted Google, which owns YouTube, for confirmation.
The move is reminiscent of Instagram’s strategy to remove the “like” counts from posts to apparently “minimise the stress of posting online”.
However, soon after, Instagram changed the feature back to the way it was originally.
The most disliked video on the platform, YouTube Rewind 2018, was uploaded by YouTube itself.
The video was bombarded with dislikes from the moment it was shared, with users unhappy the service refrained from mentioning several “grassroots” YouTubers and opting to pick Hollywood heavyweight Will Smith as host.
Rewind 2018 currently has 19 million dislikes but only three million likes.
Some joked that YouTube had decided to scrap its dislike feature just in time for its 2021 Rewind, to avoid the inevitable disapproval headed its way.
Others slammed the company for removing one of the few tools users have to determine the quality of videos.
Some small creators doubted the move would help their cause, with trolls just turning to nasty comments instead of hitting the dislike button.
Others suggested the platform’s move was to boost views for corporate channels, which traditionally receive a colder reception from the online community.
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