YouTube is removing the “dislike” count from YouTube videos

YouTube is experimenting with the “Dislike” button. Viewers wouldn’t be able to see the number of dislikes on a video, but they still would be able to dislike a video if they really don’t like it. The “Like” button would continue to work similarly as it does now, i.e., the number of likes would be shown to the masses.

YouTube believes that many times people dislike a video just because there are too many unexpected ‘dislikes.’ The count shown on a YouTube video is also demotivating for the creators. And YouTube doesn/t want this.

Creators, on the other hand, would be able to view everything, i.e., the number of likes and dislikes on a video in the YouTube Studio.

In a recent support article, YouTube said:

Viewer feedback has always been and will continue to be, an important part of YouTube. But we’ve heard from creators that the public dislike counts can impact their wellbeing, and may motivate a targeted campaign of dislikes on a creator’s video. So, we’re testing designs that don’t include the visible like or dislike count in an effort to balance improving the creator experience, while still making sure viewer feedback is accounted for and shared with the creator. 

While experimenting, the video streaming giant earlier said it was considering three idea:

• Hiding the count for likes and dislikes
• Adding factors for disliking a video
• Removing likes and dislikes entirely

For now, it is just an experiment and not every viewer would experience this. If results are promising, the company may implement them to the fullest.

Source: The Verge