As concerns over social media addiction continue to mount, YouTube has officially introduced a timer feature for its short-form video service, Shorts, allowing users to set daily viewing limits and helping them avoid mindlessly scrolling away an entire day.
According to a report by TechCrunch, the feature has already begun rolling out to all users. Within the app’s settings, viewers can manually set a daily Shorts viewing cap; once the limit is reached, a reminder pop-up appears, encouraging them to take a break. Though the prompt can be dismissed with a single tap, it nonetheless serves as a moment of awareness—a subtle reminder of just how much time one has spent watching short clips in bed.
At present, this timer is not yet integrated with parental controls, but YouTube plans to introduce this functionality next year. Once implemented, parents or guardians will be able to set daily Shorts limits for their children, with reminder pop-ups that cannot be easily dismissed, providing a more robust form of digital supervision.
This is not YouTube’s first foray into digital well-being features. The platform has long offered “take a break” reminders, which can be scheduled at chosen intervals, as well as bedtime notifications designed to encourage healthier screen habits.
YouTube’s renewed emphasis on digital wellness reflects wider legal and societal pressure facing the social media industry. According to Bloomberg, nearly 2,000 lawsuits have been filed against major platforms, many of which accuse these companies of deliberately designing their services to be addictive.
As public scrutiny over digital dependency intensifies, major platforms are being forced to recalibrate the balance between user engagement and well-being. YouTube’s move can thus be seen as a tangible response to growing concerns—a modest yet meaningful step toward empowering users to regain control of their time, even if true restraint ultimately depends on self-discipline.
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