YouTube Introduces User-Requested Hide Button for End Screens YouTube is rolling out a new feature that addresses a common viewer complaint. The platform will now allow users to dismiss the popups and video suggestions that appear at the end of videos. These elements, known as end screens, are a standard tool for creators to promote other content, but YouTube states it listened to community feedback that viewers wanted a way to remove them to better focus on the video they are finishing. The new solution is a simple Hide button. If the end screen elements appear before the video has fully concluded, viewers can tap or click a Hide button located in the top right corner of the video player. This will immediately clear the popups from view. It is important to note that this setting is not permanent. The Hide function only applies to the specific video you are currently watching. For each new video, you will need to click the button again if you wish to remove the end screens. Despite this minor inconvenience, the option is a welcome change for viewers. While end screens are a valuable metric for creators, giving users control over their viewing experience is a positive step. When these prompts interfere with watching the content, the ability to hide them is a straightforward quality-of-life improvement. In a related interface tweak, YouTube is also removing a redundant feature from the desktop version of the site. Previously, hovering your mouse over a channel’s watermark logo in the corner of a video would trigger a small Subscribe button to appear. This functionality is being eliminated because a dedicated and more prominent Subscribe button is already available directly below the video player. The hover-to-subscribe feature was deemed unnecessary. YouTube has assured creators that these changes are not intended to hinder their ability to grow their channels. The platform emphasizes that creators can still use end screens and watermarks as they always have. Furthermore, YouTube claims the impact on channel performance will be minimal. According to their data, giving users the option to hide end screens led to a decrease of less than 1.5 percent in views generated from those end screens. The removal of the hover-to-subscribe button on watermarks is expected to have an even smaller effect, as the platform states it accounted for less than 0.05 percent of all channel subscriptions. These updates reflect YouTube’s ongoing effort to balance the promotional needs of its creators with the viewing preferences of its massive audience. The introduction of the Hide button directly responds to user requests for a less intrusive experience, while the data suggests the changes will not significantly harm creator growth.
