YouTube has added a zero-minute timer option to its Shorts feed, effectively disabling the short-form video section entirely on Android and iOS. The previous floor was 15 minutes, set when YouTube first announced the Shorts timer in October.
The zero-minute option rolled out first to parents in January as a parental control, with a broader release promised. According to YouTube spokesperson Makenzie Spiller, it is now live for all users, not just those managing kids accounts.
The mechanics of how YouTube implements a zero-minute limit, and what it actually blocks versus what slips through, is the reason to read the full Verge piece. A toggle that says zero minutes means nothing if Shorts surface elsewhere in the app.
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