YouTube has announced a new AI-powered feature which will automatically upscale lower-quality videos on smart TVs. The new feature, called ‘Super Resolution,’ will initially focus on upscaling videos below 1080p and upgrade them to HD resolution, but YouTube says it also has plans for supporting up to 4K resolution upscaling in the future.
Thankfully, YouTube will provide the option for both creators and viewers to opt out of the upscaling effort. This is in contrast to the AI-powered audio dubbing feature that the streaming giant released a few months back that only gave creators the option to exclusively keep their videos out of the dubbing effort, while viewers have to change the audio for each video they view.
“Creators will retain complete control over their library, as both original files and original video resolution will be kept intact, with a clear option to opt-out of these enhancements. And viewers will still be able to watch creators’ videos in the original uploaded resolution, as ‘Super Resolution’ will be clearly labeled under settings,” YouTube said in its blog post.
YouTube is also giving creators the option of having higher-quality thumbnails for their video, getting the limit up from 2MP to now 50MP. The company says this new change will allow creators to serve videos with ‘stunning 4K-resolution thumbnails.’
The company also said in its blog post that it has begun testing larger video uploads with select creators in order to enable even higher quality original uploads, but there is no fixed timeline for that yet.
“The TV screen is our fastest-growing surface, and we remain committed to delivering features that make creator content shine. Because that’s the beauty of YouTube,” the company said in a blog post.
YouTube is also changing how content gets discovered on TVs, saying that when a search from a creator’s channel page is made for a video, it will now give more priority to that channel by putting its videos at the top of the results in order to protect their content from getting lost in the stream of content.
The company is also giving viewers an easier way to shop while viewing content on its app on smart TVs. It says that on tagged shopping videos, viewers will be able to scan a shopping QR code in order to instantly open the product page on their phone. Meanwhile, YouTube is also testing the ability to feature products at specific, timed moments within videos.
“By removing extra steps and catching the viewer’s interest at the most relevant time, we’re making it easier for viewers to act on their inspiration, helping creators drive conversions and grow their brands from the biggest screen in the home,” YouTube says.
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