Original Thinking? YouTube Shifts Streaming Strategy
By Amos We
When we feel like binge-watching after a long day of work, we usually choose Netflix, Hulu, Disney+ and so on.
We don’t usually hear someone say: “Oh I’ve been binge-watching YouTube all day long.” It probably has to do with the platform’s positioning – we normally go on YouTube to watch music videos, YouTubers’ content, educational videos, or when we want to learn how to fix something and how to cook. Spontaneously, it won’t be our first choice when it comes to binge-watching.
However, did you know YouTube launched a subscription-based service YouTube Red in 2015 for users to watch its original content? It’s not surprising at all if you know nothing about it, as the service ended three years later and was rebranded as YouTube Premium – an ad-free streaming service. That is to say, all the original programmes, which were only available for YouTube Red subscribers, are now free to watch (with ads of course) on YouTube Originals.
This strategy – moving all the original content from an $11.99-per-month subscription-based service to a free ad-supported service – signified the platform’s decision to pull itself out from the war of streaming giants.
“Showcasing YouTube Originals in front of the paywall and moving away from traditional scripted content were definitely big decisions”
While Netflix continues to dominate the binge-watch culture and Disney+ does the complete opposite by releasing WandaVision one episode per week, YouTube Originals sticks to its rebranding and stresses its own strengths – the music industry and the kids’ market.
The rebranding includes a shift from focusing on creating original scripted content to unscripted celebrities’ documentaries/docuseries.
You might’ve seen this coming if you had compared the platform’s most popular original scripted series to its most successful docuseries – the martial arts drama Cobra Kai’s first episode accumulated around 110 million views since its debut two and a half years ago in May 2018, while the first episode of Justin Bieber: Seasons, which YouTube invested more than $20 million in, has already garnered nearly 70 million views within a year.
YouTube Originals’ setback in producing original scripted content is obvious as most people can’t seem to name a single hit show on the platform (well, other than Cobra Kai), not to mention almost all of the shows got cancelled after their second seasons. On the other hand, Netflix has given us hit after hit, including Stranger Things, The Umbrella Academy, Sex Education, Bridgerton… just to name a few.
“Showcasing YouTube Originals in front of the paywall and moving away from traditional scripted content were definitely big decisions,” said YouTube Originals programming chief Susanne Daniels, “But with over 3 billion views right now [in 2020], we know our new content is resonating with our global audience, and we will continue to embrace this strategy in 2021.”
In 2020, YouTube Originals teamed up with numerous celebrities in producing unscripted content including Justin Bieber’s 10-episode docuseries Justin Bieber: Seasons, Paris Hilton’s documentary This Is Paris, Why Don’t We’s 30 Days With: Why Don’t We, among others.
The success of these unscripted shows results in YouTube’s announcement at the Television Critics Association’s (TCA) 2021 Winter Press Tour, underlining its commitment to “partnering with YouTube Creators, musicians, and artists to tell authentic and dynamic stories centered on music, personalities, learning and families.”
First season into 2021, we are already expecting new docuseries from the global platform, including Demi Lovato: Dancing with the Devil, K-pop Evolution, and Alicia Keys’s untitled project.
Celebrities aside, YouTube doesn’t forget one of its main audience groups – the kids.
As of January 2021, the most subscribed children-themed channel ChuChu TV Nursery Rhymes & Kids Songs has 44.8 million subscribers. To draw a comparison, Ariana Grande has around 47 million subscribers on the platform. Also, could you believe Peppa Pig (21.6 million) has more subscribers than Miley Cyrus (15.1 million)?
Therefore, it is definitely reasonable for YouTube Originals to put out a collection of original kids shows, with up to 25 projects in development.
“Each of these projects is in lockstep with the tone of the YouTube Originals Kids & Family brand.” Nadine Zylstra, Head of Family, Learning and Impact for YouTube Originals continued, “In essence, shows that are entertaining, compelling, embrace big ideas, have strong takeaways and ultimately bring the positive spirit of YouTube to life for our youngest audience.”
Previously, YouTube announced a $100 million commitment to invest in kids, family and educational programming. With that amount of investment, plus orders from BBC Studio, Tiger Aspect and Blue Zoo, high-quality kids shows are to be expected.
Other new features of the streamer include YouTube Shorts. “Shorts” as in TikTok-inspired (or, perhaps, Vine-inspired?) “short videos”. The new feature was first launched as a beta in December 2020 in India and is already receiving 3.5 billion global views. This has led to the expansion of the beta to the United States in March.
Though there haven't been any announcements, it won't be surprising if YouTube decides to officially make the new feature available worldwide - since social media platforms have no hesitation in launching another TikTok copycat, such as Instagram Reels for example.