Since it was founded back in 2005 by three ex-PayPal employees, YouTube has literally gone from strength to strength and few people could have predicted its dramatic rise.

But what makes YouTube so special and has the company set up with the underlying objective to “give everyone a voice?” delivered on its promise?

Well, the answer to YouTube’s success lies in part within the stats, some of which are totally mind blowing:

  • Over 4 billion YouTube videos are viewed every day
  • 72 hours of video are uploaded to YouTube every minute.
  • The number of YouTube users is estimated at over 800 million located all over the world.

But does YouTube give everyone a voice?

With the exceptions of countries where media and content remains tightly controlled, the overriding answer is yes.

YouTube not just delivers globally without prejudice or barriers, but has also been showing content such as – live political debates, the Queens Christmas address, footage from civilians in war-torn countries – as well as convicting criminals for acts caught on camera, funding charitable and hard-hitting campaigns, making people laugh, helping people communicate globally and ultimately giving people their chance to have a say on any issue.

Key Demographics:

  • 70% of YouTube traffic is from outside the USA
  • YouTube is localised in 25 countries across 43 languages
  • The base age demographic for YouTube is 18-54
  • More than half of YouTube videos have been rated or had comments added

YouTube also receives a vast amount of advertising revenue to the point where you can’t help but get frustrated by Pre-Roll adverts and banners advertising content that YouTube’s advertisers deem accurate for someone of your profile.

But lets not forget the viral films

In such a crowded environment every company wants a share of voice and this often means looking for creative ideas that spread as a viral film.  However few companies manage to actually deliver viral material.  This often comes down to protecting their brand, ensuring the correct tone of voice is used in line with brand guidelines, whilst not withstanding budgets, which can become enormous on Viral material.  Such an example includes the T-Mobile Royal Wedding, which was devised by Saatchi & Saatchi and achieved 72 million streams in 188 countries.

Clearly the viral films that achieve the most views and exposure aren’t those that are necessarily scripted and therefore occurred completely by chance and captured imaginations across the globe.

Below you can watch the current two most viewed videos below and decide for yourself.

Whether you’re a lover or a hater of YouTube, there’s one thing for certain – it’s a platform that’s only getting bigger, especially given YouTube’s buyout by Google.

So the answer seems to be yes, YouTube has delivered on its initial corporate vision “to give everyone a voice”.  It’s certainly not perfect, but the figures, demographics and choice of free content speak for themselves.

So here’s to the next 7 years and perhaps even more mind-blowing stats.

For all your video needs – contact Energise Media to see how we can give you a superb YouTube presence.