YouTube Tries to Become More Like TV

At the end of the day, many of us flop on the couch and turn on the TV to channel surf. But if YouTube has its way, more of us will be channel surfing the online video service instead. A majority of YouTube visits happen because someone clicks on a link from a friend or searches for a certain video. YouTube is trying to encourage casual users to use it more like diehards, who return every day or when they have a few minutes, to check in on their favorite channels. (Channels on YouTube are series of videos by the same creator, whether your sister posting baby videos, a YouTube celebrity or a professional producer like ESPN or PBS.) YouTube’s effort to get casual users to become more dedicated is critical as people increasingly use YouTube on mobile phones or televisions; it is more difficult to browse YouTube for interesting videos on those devices. YouTube began rolling out a redesigned Web site that it hopes will nudge people to subscribe to channels and return daily. With the redesign, every time you visit YouTube on any device, you will see the latest videos from the channels to which you subscribe.