I’m going to be really honest — I’ve been a regular YouTube user for over a decade now, and I’ve only used the streaming platform’s dedicated ‘Trending‘ section a handful of times. There’s nothing wrong with the 2015-launched section.
It’s just that whenever I hop on the streaming platform, I know exactly what I’m looking for, and don’t need a list of popular videos to tell me what to watch. The countless recommended shelves on the app’s home screen are more than enough to keep me scrolling if I’m looking to discover new content.
I’d imagine there are countless others like me. YouTube has relevant data that shows the Trending section’s usage — data that is trending lower.
Almost 10 years after the section’s launch, YouTube is getting rid of the Trending page. The streaming giant highlighted the development in a community support post earlier today, suggesting that the change will kick in on July 21.
Back when we first launched the Trending page in 2015, the answer to “what’s trending?” was a lot simpler to capture with a singular list of viral videos that everyone was talking about. Today, trends consist of many videos created by many fandoms, and there are more micro-trends enjoyed by diverse communities than ever before.
YouTube Charts take over Trending’s load
According to YouTube, users today are increasingly influenced by different places across YouTube. This includes the likes of recommendations, search suggestions, comments, and Communities. That is mainly why the content giant is moving away from “one all-encompassing Trending list” and investing more in the 2018-launched YouTube Charts.
After July 21, users will still be able to find the most popular content across different categories, albeit via Charts. As of right now, Charts only highlights trending music videos, weekly top podcast shows, and trending movie trailers, but more categories are reportedly on the way. “While we’re building more charts, the Gaming Explore page will still be your go-to for the Trending gaming videos,” wrote the streaming giant.
This also means that Music will soon be the top section after it takes Trending‘s place in the YouTube sidebar on the web and on mobile.
Do you use YouTube’s Trending section, or are you like me and discover content on the platform’s home screen or your subscriptions? Let us know in the comments below.
