YouTube

Major brands like Lidl, Mars and Cadbury maker Mondelez have pulled advertising from YouTube after they found their ads appearing alongside sexualised videos of children.

The videos in question are reported to have attracted ‘hundreds of comments’ by suspected pedophiles …

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Amazon’s Echo Show is a really cool gadget. An always-listening smart speaker with Alexa and a screen is a great idea, but the device’s functionality was severely limited when YouTube was disabled a couple months ago. Now, YouTube is working on the Echo Show once again, but it’s way different.

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As traditional banner advertising becomes less reliable, creators are looking for alternative ways to monetize their content. The YouTube community specifically has been fighting related battles lately, with YouTube algorithms demonetizing many videos for unjustified reasons in many cases.

That’s where the team behind the Brave browser hopes that its technology will one day come in. The team envisions a future where content consumers can pay makers directly via cryptocurrency transactions, and that vision has now taken a step closer to becoming real…

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Last month, Google announced dedicated YouTube TV apps for its cord-cutting streaming solution. Having launched first on Android TV and Xbox, the client is now available on 2016 and 2017 LG and Samsung televisions.

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YouTube has done a lot to change how links are handled in videos in the past year or so. Not long ago, annotations were dropped for in-video links and end screens. Now, YouTube is preparing to kill off in-video links as well.

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YouTube Kids is Google’s child-optimized and friendly interface to its video network. Launched two years ago, it is seeing a refresh today that brings a “tailored” interface that adapts to a kid’s age. It is also adding profiles for kids that allow for better personalization.

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Ahead of tomorrow’s Congressional hearings, Google has published its findings on Russian interference related to the 2016 U.S. election. In several reports, Google provided an overview of how a Russian-linked organization used Ads, YouTube, and other services to spread information, as well as upcoming steps to counteract it.

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Most “bezel-light” devices on the market make their much larger displays more manageable by adopting a thinner, more one-hand friendly 18:9 aspect ratio. In some cases, that doesn’t play well, especially with 16:9 video. Now, YouTube has a native way to adapt to that ratio for Google’s new flagship.

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Following an update to YouTube Music last night, the latest version of the main YouTube app is rolling out. Version 12.41.53 has very little in the way of new features, though there is one notable server-side change to the YouTube app.

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With YouTube’s brand redesign in August, Google’s video service significantly revamped its web app, while its mobile apps received various tweaks to match. YouTube Music was initially updated with some of this new branding, but this week receives a new icon.

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YouTube already has an “Autoplay” feature that will automatically start suggested videos after the current one finishes. However, Google is now testing auto-playing in the main feed of the Android app.

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YouTube has announced a new policy change that limits placing external links within the video player to users who are in the Partner Program. However, contrary to earlier uproar, monetization does not need to be enabled.

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Back in May, Amazon announced the Echo Show, a new version of the company’s virtual assistant speaker with a built-in screen. Since its release, when users asked to watch cooking and music videos, it pulled them from YouTube. All of that changed today as Google has now removed YouTube support from the Echo Show…

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A teardown of the latest version of the YouTube app this afternoon has possibly revealed the existence of a new subscription service. The new “YouTube Plus” string appears to coexist with the current Red service, though how they differ is currently unknown.

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Update (2:18 PM PT) — Since originally publishing this article, Google has also started to push out HDR YouTube support for the Google Pixel, LG V30, and Sony Xperia XZ Premium. I’m personally not seeing the new addition on my Pixel, but if you have any of the above devices, be sure to head to the YouTube app try watching an HDR-compatible clip!

Last November, Google announced that it was officially supporting HDR video content on YouTube. HDR videos on YouTube have previously only been available to watch on Google’s Chromecast Ultra and select Android TV devices, but it appears that HDR YouTube videos are now available on the Samsung Galaxy S8, S8+, and Note 8

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Google has become known for testing new features for its apps/services with users, and YouTube has been no exception. This morning, we spotted a new addition to the Home page on the YouTube Android app, and to be perfectly honest, it’s incredibly annoying.

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