YouTube home page gets face lift, emphasis on channels

Google today unveiled a fresh look for its YouTube video Web site, going with a cleaner design that emphasizes subscriptions and channels even more than before. The company made the announcement on its blog, running through some of the changes. Those changes include placing the video at the top of the page, putting it front and center for the viewer, and adding elements such as subscribe, the social action options, and the video information right below the player. Playlists are on the right, and can be browsed while the video is playing. The company said these changes are being made throughout the site. The hope is that viewers come for one video and can browse and find more videos afterwards, keeping them on the site longer. YouTube also introduced a guide that alerts users of new videos in their subscription list. The subscriptions and guide can be found on other devices beyond the PC, including Android, iPhone, PlayStation 3, and Google TV. Google last redesigned YouTube a year ago with an early emphasis on channels.