YouTube channels can now 'pause' video comments

YouTube is getting a new option for creators or channel owners, now allowing them to pause posting comments on their videos if they wish while keeping previous comments visible.

Until now, YouTube channel owners had a couple of options regarding posting comments on videos: allow them, or disable them. By setting the latter, not only did it prevent any new comments on the video, but all the others were automatically hidden (in those videos that previously had comments enabled).

That said, the new YouTube ‘Pause’ option will allow Creators to prevent viewers from adding new comments on a particular video, but keeping visible all the others that have been published up to that point.

The ‘Pause’ option will be available from both the YouTube app settings and YouTube Studio, making it easier to access. According to the YouTube team, this feature will offer channel owners more flexibility with regards to the management of comments on videos, in addition to allowing them to ‘take a break’ from new comments for one reason or another.

On top of that, it looks like the company is also renaming its current comment moderation settings to make them a little clearer. YouTube channel owners will have 3 main options:

• On.
• Pause.
• Off.

By using the ‘On’ option, Creators can choose between four levels of moderation:

• None: Don’t hold any comments.
• Basic: Hold potentially inappropriate comments.
• Strict: Hold a broader range of potentially inappropriate comments.
• Hold all: Hold all comments.

The changes already appear on the official YouTube blog, and like other new features, the rolling out is happening gradually, so you may not have the ‘Pause’ option available in your account yet. However, it is a matter of days or weeks for it to reach all users worldwide.