TL;DR
- YouTube is testing a change that hides the dislike button on long-form videos inside the three-dot menu.
- The button hasn’t been removed entirely, but the extra step could discourage viewers from leaving negative feedback.
- The change appears limited to a small group of users, but a similar experiment on Shorts eventually led to the dislike button’s removal.
YouTube is no stranger to controversial design changes, and if you thought that it was done messing with how dislikes work on the platform, think again. What started out as YouTube removing the dislike counter all the way back in 2021 matured into the streaming giant removing the button on the platform’s short-form videos. Now, it looks like the same treatment will make its way to the platform’s long-form videos.
YouTube has been spotted experimenting with a hidden dislike button on regular, long-form videos. While the change hasn’t made its way out widely, it is a sign of where the platform might be heading next, and users clearly aren’t pleased, as pointed out by Neowin.