Abbreviated public subscriber counts are gradually rolling out starting next week. We heard a lot of feedback from the community following our announcement in May – we’ve updated our original post with more info here → https://yt.be/help/LF4J
I haven't read a single positive comment in favor of doing this, but we all know it really doesn't matter. Youtube doesn't give a fuck about what it's creators or viewers want, and it's been like this for years. Are we really that surprised that this is happening?