YouTube users will soon have a new way to identify themselves. The company has announced “handles”, which comes with an @username format in order to interact with their viewers across YouTube Shorts, channel pages, in video descriptions, in comments and more. Such handles are meant for everyone on YouTube and not just creators of a certain size or subscriber count.
“It’ll soon be simpler and faster to mention each other in comments, community posts, video descriptions and more. For example, creators can be shouted out in a mention in comments or tagged in the title of a recent collab, helping them increase visibility and reach with new audiences. Handles join channel names as another way to identify a YouTube channel, but unlike channel names, handles are truly unique to each channel so creators can further establish their distinct presence and brand on YouTube,” says YouTube.
Over the next month, YouTube will notify creators when they can choose a handle for their channel. If a channel already has a personalised URL, that will automatically become their default handle, or they can opt to change the handle for their channel as soon as the notification in YouTube Studio comes through.
The move brings YouTube more in line with TikTok at a time when the company is pushing its investment towards Shorts. Last month, YouTube announced it would bring monetisation to Shorts, letting creators keep 45 per cent of the ad revenue.
Once a handle is established, YouTube will additionally create a matching URL in the format of youtube.com/@handle, which would allow the creator to market their handle elsewhere on the web or in other media.
Since handles must be unique and every channel on YouTube will have one, the company is rolling them out gradually. “The timing of when a creator will get access to the handles selection process depends on a number of factors, including overall YouTube presence, subscriber count and whether the channel is active or inactive,” says YouTube.