As has been rumored on sites such as ClickZ, Mashable, and even Reuters the last two weeks, YouTube’s redesign changes took effect yesterday, April 16th.
One of the first things that became apparent were the experimental design changes appearing on select YouTube Partner Channels, such as this one belonging to “sxephil”:
Note: sxephil reverted back to his original design after this image and blog were posted
YouTube is soliciting user feedback on the changes. To contribute your opinion, or just to see what others are saying, cruise over to the YouTube Channel 2.0 Beta blog. There you will also find links to many of the channels YouTube is using as its laboratory for testing.
You TOO Can Test Drive YouTube Channel Design 2.0
Wanna test out how your future Channel may look before YouTube takes it live in a few weeks?
You can switch to the beta design on your own YouTube channel by following the instructions in this user-created video by YouTube Partner EdzJohnson — who states in his video that he himself is not participating in the beta testing phase, for he is “not a fan of the new [design].” (Me neither, Ed; I think those thumbnails are way too small.):
Again, feel free to tell YouTube what YOU think on their Channel 2.0 beta blog.
Unlike what we were preparing ourselves for today in the way of user-generated content (UGC) being pushed out of the way for more premium content to take center stage, YouTube’s call for input from its foundational user base to find out how WE WANT our channels to look feels somewhat like a peace offering. …It’s as though, hey, maybe they do actually care about us. (You know, “us” — the little people.) 
So why not give the new channel design a whirl? As YouTube states on the Secret Beta Switching page Ed refers to above, “You can back out at any time while the beta is running. [They'll] save a copy of your current ‘old’ channel design, and you can switch back to it by clicking ‘opt-out.’”
Do note they also warn that “things may break” during this “experimental” stage. (I think I may stick with Ed and hold off before making the full switcheroo.)
More Ch…Ch…Ch…Changes — YouTube Navigational Category Tabs
The second more major change to take effect on this day — this April 16th day we were warned would be “The Day The YouTube’s Died” (to be replaced by what some were calling “HuluTube“) — did not appear until much later: And that was the new category tab changes on the main navigation bar.
The good news is, I don’t think they’re as dramatic as many were predicting they would be. Nor do I feel they affect UGC all that negatively.
Let’s take a look…
When you first come to the YouTube site — prior to logging in — the tabs you will find are similar to what they were rumored to become. But no cigar. …Unlike what ClickZ reported on March 30th, the first three tabs are NOT “Movies, Music and Shows,” with “Videos” (what would be UGC) hanging off the end as some after-thought.
Rather, before a user logs into the site, the navigational tabs happen to put UGC in pole position to be searched and discovered (just after the “Home” homepage tab):
Home – Videos – Shows* – Channels - Community
And once logged in, things get even more interesting — not to mention more advantageous for the UGC on YouTube!
Now what moves to the head of the pack (if you’re scanning L -> R, that is) is — get this! — “SUBSCRIPTIONS” (again, after the “Home” tab).
Then it’s “Videos,” then “Shows,” then “Channels.” …And “Community” even drops off. (Good riddance!)
Home - Subscriptions – Videos – Shows* – Channels
At first run through (albeit VERY brief), I am really digging this Subscription tab, as this is going to give the user so much more control over what content they are exposed to on the site. Log in and go straight to the videos you want to watch, but have the option to access professional and premium content more easily than ever before due to the more defined segmentation between the category tabs.
In my opinion, “Subscriptions, Videos, Shows” is MUCH more ideal than the originally proposed “Movies, Music, Shows, Videos.”
(*Note that currently, the premium content will be limited to U.S. viewers only. If you take a look at the U.K. navigation tabs, for example, you’ll see this “Shows” tab change is not present.)
YouTube is also going to use such premium content — much of which it’s acquired from major studios such as CBS, MGM, the BBC, and Disney — to run in-stream advertising. Advertisers will be able to use Google TV Ads to place commercials into the ad breaks of these full-length movie and TV programs watched on the site.
Time To Test…And Time Will Tell
Looks like there’s definitely LOTS to explore. And that’s what I’m off to do, for it’s less than 12 hours until the YouTube Secret Weapon “Catchup” Webinar (our 6th Bonus Webinar since launching back in January) that Paul Colligan and I are holding for our customers. Rest assured I’ll be up the remainder of the night testing how owners of YouTube Secret Weapon can take advantage of these recent design and navigational changes so that they continue to attract the MAXIMUM targeted audience viewership for their niche-focused videos.
Now that we’ve witnessed the initial unveiling of this round of changes, I’m feeling much more optimistic that YouTube will continue to find ways to meet its two seemingly conflicting goals of monetizing the site while also remaining true to its user-generated content roots and audience. Nice job, YouTube, of striking that delicate balance on this release.
(And I hopefully won’t change my tune once I get in there and start testing.)
YouTube Secret Weapon owners join Paul and me for our “Catchup” Bonus Webinar Friday at 1PM EDT / 10 AM PDT to get our initial reactions on how you can BENEFIT and TAKE ADVANTAGE of these recent YouTube changes.
Change = good!