Nielsen crowns YouTube #1 Streamer in America 12 months straight!
Feb 20, 2024 – minute read
YouTube is defining a new era of entertainment and today, Nielsen - the global leader in insights, data and analytics - announced YouTube is the #1 streaming platform by watchtime for one full year. That means 12 consecutive months of fans consistently choosing YouTube as the destination for all of their 'must see' content from their favorite YouTube creators, artists and media partners.
Viewers globally now watch more than 1 billion hours on average of YouTube content on their TVs every day.
“When I started at YouTube, people thought about content from major studios and content from creators as entirely different,” explained YouTube CEO, Neal Mohan, in his recent letter to the YouTube community. “But today that stark divide is gone. Viewers want everything in one place, from a live sports game to the BBC to Khan Academy and NikkieTutorials. And they’re watching YouTube the way we used to sit down together for traditional TV shows – on the biggest screen in the home with friends and family.”
And, the numbers tell the same story. Viewers globally now watch more than 1 billion hours on average of YouTube content on their TVs every day and the number of top creators that receive the majority of their watchtime on tvs has increased by more than 400%.1 Not to mention, views of YouTube Shorts on connected TVs have grown by more than 100% from January to September 2023.2
From our updated content experience, to the evolution of our CTV ads, we have committed to building a streaming platform that is made for the living room but also uniquely YouTube.
YouTube has long been the go-to destination for entertaining and educational content. Our YouTube creators are producing the type of content consumers not only expect - but want - to watch. They are today's studios, writers, editors and actors driving the entertainment industry forward in unparalleled ways. In addition YouTube offers unparalleled immersion into content like NFL Sunday Ticket and global events like Coachella - which had 45M people tune in last year - making ‘channel surfing’ across all of YouTube’s library seamless, engaging - and fun.
“ I think the perception of content creators is changing. We’re different from Hollywood, because we have the quality and we also have a personal relationship with our audience.”
“There are so many creators whose content quality rivals traditional television and documentaries. I grew up watching the Disney Channel and I wanted to be like Kim Possible or Hannah Montana. Now, young girls are watching me on TV. It’s crazy!” says HopeScope, a creator who saw a 172% increase in TV watchtime in 2023.
Creator, Kinigra Deon, had over 70% of her viewership come from connected TVs in 2023 and she shared a similar sentiment. “I think the perception of content creators is changing,” says Kinigra. “Starting out on YouTube, low production three minute sketches couldn’t be compared to television. It was more about being viral than being a true creative. Let’s go to now. The YouTubers I see now have professional cameras, entire studios and they’re creating this fan base with high quality content. We’re different from Hollywood, because we have the quality and we also have a personal relationship with our audience.”
You can read the full interviews with both Kinigra and Hope at Creators & Artist Stories.
- Google/YouTube Internal Data
- Google/YouTube Internal Data