According to a post on Reddit (via Android Police), it appears that Google is testing Google Search integration with the Android version of the YouTube app. An example posted by a Redditor shows YouTube search results for “open beer with knife,” a talent that could come in handy if you are living alone during the pandemic and your openers are all dirty. The results come back with some useful and not so useful videos to watch.
Underneath the videos there is a section that says Result from the web which essentially is a result from Google Search. In this case, it brings up an article from lifehacker titled “Open a Beer Bottle With a Butter Knife.” Underneath the title, there is a short description of the article. As Android Police points out, this integration isn’t listed in the “YouTube test features and experiments” page on the Google Support website. And a quick search showed that our Pixel 2 XL running Android 10 does not yet have this feature.
As you know, Google owns YouTube and integrating Google Search into the Android YouTube app is a sure-fire way to generate more clicks and advertising revenue for the company. During the first quarter, which covers January through March 2020, Google Search generated $24.5 billion in revenue for a year-over-year gain of 11.6%. While the integration does help out Google financially, is there any benefit to users? Sure. Those interested enough to search for videos on a subject matter will be happy to find more information about it on Google Search.
Although Google is currently testing this feature on the Android version of the YouTube app, there is no reason why Google Search integration can’t also be found on the iOS version of YouTube.
