Google introduces video sharing and chat directly in the YouTube mobile app for Android and iOS

Users of the mobile YouTube application now have a sharing tab that lets users directly share videos with their contacts. There is also a private chat option, that allows a group of users to discuss a particular video among themselves. YouTube initially started testing a invite based beta version of the feature with a few select users in **May last year** . Early this year, there was a wider rollout for **users in Canada** . Now the feature is enabled for all users of the YouTube application on smartphones, but is not available on the desktop version of the site. [caption id=“attachment_3905537” align=“alignleft” width=“380”]  The new chat feature.[/caption] The features have been introduced based on user feedback. The share button below the video now shows profiles of your contacts on YouTube. It is possible to pick multiple contacts from the list. Once a conversation is initiated, you can discuss the video, invite more people, or share more videos in the chat stream. At the bottom of the application, along with Home, Trending, Subscriptions and Library, there is now a “Shared” tab that contains all the conversations. The “Shared” tab contains a list of YouTube contacts that users frequently share videos with. The move is meant to make it easier to share videos, instead of users having to go through the cumbersome process of tapping on the sharing button, copying the link, and pasting it in another instant messaging application. However, users can continue to share the YouTube videos through the links if they want to do so.