[YouTube-API] Removing Restriction of API Access to a User's Messages

Please improve the messages APIs. While I understand that it isn't a priority of YouTube to add full functionality to the messages API, I am strongly requesting that the following revisions be made so that a useful inbox experience can be provided by third-party applications.

First, I'd like to reiterate, in its simplest form, the messaging system which YouTube provides on its website. YouTube provides a system that allows a user to send text to another user. The target user then visits their inbox and receives that message. Now, add a subject field, and finally, an attach a video field. YouTube.com also has other useful types of messages you can receive in the inbox -- videos shared with you, and notifications regarding comments on your videos, comment replies, and video responses.

Currently, the APIs provided for third-party applications to interface with this messaging system are very limited. They allow developers to access the videos others have shared with a user, allow users to share videos with others in their contacts, and delete received messages. The issue is that the API doesn't provide communication at its most basic level: sending a simple textual message to another user, and allowing them to receive and view that message. It exposes seemingly the least useful feature in YouTube's messaging system to developers.

According to this thread, the reasoning behind this is to combat spam. However, I feel that spam can be just as much of a problem with the "shared with you" system as anything else, the only difference is the spammer needs to include a video with the message. In addition, the API doesn't allow you to retrieve simple messages in a user's inbox from YouTube.com, which should be available.

I also noticed a strange inconsistency: messages with videos attached aren't able to be received in the API either, only strictly videos "shared with you" are.

So, in summary, I'm requesting that the following functionality be added to the YouTube Data API:

• Sending of messages with a subject and any message body (with or without a video attached).
• Allowing the feed to return the full inbox of a user, including comments, video responses, and normal messages without a video attached.
• Retrieval of video responses, and the ability to approve or ignore them.

I realize that the response I'd typically receive for this type of post would be a link to the improvements / issues page on Google Code to submit a request. I've already taken the liberty of doing so. Please respond with your thoughts. I really want to create a fully-functional YouTube experience for users, but leaving out core functionality from the API doesn't allow me to do so.

http://code.google.com/p/gdata-issues/issues/detail?id=2849

Thank you.

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