YouTube introduces new creator features

Users will soon be able to more easily view, stream, and create online videos with a series of new features introduced by YouTube at its annual VidCon conference in Anaheim on Thursday. 

So, you want to be YouTube famous? Well, you may be in luck. The video-sharing site is making it a bit easier to achieve viral fame. 

On Thursday at the annual VidCon conference in Anaheim, Calif. – a three-day convention of about 18,000 YouTube celebrities, fans, and everyone in between – Google-owned YouTube officially announced new features to help you better manage, stream, and fund your YouTube projects. 

Need to tweak your YouTube persona on the go? There's an app for that. The YouTube Creator Studio app lets users view analytics and manage video content from Android and iOS mobile devices. Need to stream video-game footage that's just as high quality as when you're actually playing? YouTube will also begin supporting videos at 48 and 60 frames per second. Need to fund your YouTube channel and don't feel like going through outside sites such as Kickstarter or Indiegogo? YouTube is also testing a new Fan Funding feature for desktop and Android that lets users donate to their favorite channels. YouTube creators who are testing this pay feature include Dulce Delight, Fitness Blender, The Healthcare Triage, and The King of Random. 

Other updates include video subtitles submitted by fans themselves to let the more than one billion people who watch YouTube each month follow along, even if they speak different languages or are hard of hearing. 

"In the coming months, your fans will be able to submit translations in any language based on the subtitles or captions you’ve created, helping you reach even more viewers," reads a YouTube blog post from executives Matthew Glotzbach and Oliver Heckmann. The post further notes that the features are designed based on user feedback. "We take your feedback seriously, which is why we’re focusing on these areas that you’ve told us are most important for you," the post reads. 

In addition, Jenna Marbles, the popular music entertainer and YouTube personality, will host a weekly show on SiriusXM radio "featuring the biggest names and rising stars in music from YouTube." 

These changes represent both the popularity and the shifts of online video. Since the VidCon conference began in 2010, it has grown from a relatively small gathering of 1,400 attendees in Los Angeles to requiring two halls in the Anaheim Convention Center, according to the Los Angeles Times.

"I think [online video content] is a huge cultural phenomenon that no one can take credit for or explain or understand," Hang Green, a YouTube celebrity, told the Times. "We're all just sort of watching it happen and trying to reflect it and ride along with it in the most effective ways we can."

Moreover, the top 100 video-game channels on YouTube bring in a reported 3.5 billion views each month, with the No. 1 gaming channel garnering a reported $4 million a month, according to Forbes. 

It's currently unclear when these features will be publicly available, though according to Mr. Glotzbach and Mr. Heckmann, they are working "to bring these features and more to the creator community in the future."