Backlash Over Google+ Integration Into YouTube Comments Continues To Grow

After Google launched a new platform for YouTube comments “powered” by Google+ in September, a YouTube Product Forum has been bombarded with backlash from users wanting Google+ out of their YouTube comment threads.

Scrolling through the last few days’ worth of topics listed in the YouTube Product Forum shows most are complaints about the integration of Google+ into YouTube. More than 900 topics were added in the last 24 hours, possibly prompted by a Reddit post published yesterday, pointing readers directly to the product forum link.

According to an announcement by Google in September, comments on YouTube are now sorted by relevancy versus when a comment is posted. Google claimed comments from the video’s creator, popular personalities and Google+ connections will rank above other comments, along with comments that receive many likes and replies. To make a comment on a YouTube video now, a user must attach their comment to a Google identity.

Marketing Land reached out to Google about the backlash, but has yet to receive any comments from the company.

Here’s an image from Google’s original announcement showing what a YouTube comment thread looks like with the Google+ integration:

Update: Thank you to Jon Heinl for the tip pointing Marketing Land to the growing number of comments on the Google Product Forum and a link to the Reddit post.

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Amy Gesenhues

Amy Gesenhues is Third Door Media's General Assignment Reporter, covering the latest news and updates for Marketing Land and Search Engine Land. From 2009 to 2012, she was an award-winning syndicated columnist for a number of daily newspapers from New York to Texas. With more than ten years of marketing management experience, she has contributed to a variety of traditional and online publications, including MarketingProfs.com, SoftwareCEO.com, and Sales and Marketing Management Magazine. Read more of Amy's articles.