Google Now cards are slowly becoming one of the standards in notifications. This special feature is used by several apps and services to bring quick and relevant information to a user at a single glance on his phone. Right on the lockscreen or notifications screen, you can view content and some suggestions to the information you need. For example, while watching a TV show, a Google Now interactive card can provide you information about the show including the cast, director, etc. Interactive cards have become so useful that Google decided to make them available for YouTube creators.
Interactive cards for YouTube will come in six variations: Associated Website, Fan Funding, Fundraising, Merchandise, Playlist, and Video. Each card can be included to a YouTube video to provide information and maybe some annotations for the benefit of the viewers. More content can be added and can be shown on YouTube. Note that these interactive cards also work across different platforms on the smartphone, tablet, and the web.
If you’re a creator on YouTube, there’s always been the annotations feature to add information or caption to videos. What’s good about the interactive cards though is that they look better and are viewable on mobile. You can see the new ‘Cards’ tab in Video Editor to create and edit text any time you need.
Google plans on replacing annotations with interactive cards because the search giant believes cards are more flexible and easier to share. No information when that will fully happen but Google is working on it slowly but surely.
SOURCE: Youtube Creator Blog
