Around 5 billion people use the internet globally. It is challenging to settle on a specific number, but it is enormous.
Therefore, the biggest websites in the world generate colossal numbers. Websites that crack the top ten list can create millions of dollars in advertising revenue.
YouTube is the second biggest website on the planet, second only to Google. With over 2 billion websites on the internet, how did YouTube become such a dominant figure in this sector?
Humble Beginnings
Even though the top websites in the world based on traffic are all the usual suspects, the internet has propelled many industries from multi-million to multi-billion-dollar enterprises. Although there are no gambling websites in the top ten in the world, the market has exploded over the last decade. If you want to play casino games such as poker, roulette or baccarat, plenty of high-quality online operators are looking to provide you with an excellent experience, as showcased here: https://www.ignitioncasino.eu/live-dealer/baccarat
Given that, as an internet giant, YouTube is the most popular video-sharing website in the world and has been the market leader for over a decade. Founded by Chad Hurley, Steve Chen, and Jawed Karim 18 years ago, the trio of ex-PayPal employees had a bold vision.
Establishing the platform early and ensuring the iconic logo was branded correctly are two main reasons YouTube could springboard itself to success. Even though the internet was becoming a focal point of our lives, groundbreaking innovations were still on the horizon.
In its formative years, YouTube was a platform for users to share their home videos. One of the big selling points was that you could not download the videos as you could with other websites. Instead, users would visit YouTube for videos and stay on the website.
Accelerating Popularity
YouTube started to host hugely popular videos, bringing vast waves of people to their website. Several videos have achieved billions of views, and YouTube provides a shared platform where they share some advertising revenue with creators.
Once Google bought YouTube in 2006, the accessibility and expansion of the company went into another dimension. It opened up the door for many huge partnerships. Some of the best web developers in the world could implement sophisticated algorithms into YouTube.
Your recommended videos are often highly accurate compared with your general interests and search history. In addition, it has since hosted live concerts and huge live sporting events.
As time passed, YouTube began to develop microeconomies and became one of the best organic platforms for creators. It has evolved into a platform for people to share their creative works, and creators who went viral began to earn money from them.
YouTube benefited immensely from the rise and accessibility of both the internet and smartphones.
When YouTube launched in 2005, you could barely access the site on mobile devices. Yet, a decade later, it was one of the most commonly used methods to access videos on the site.
International Popularity
YouTube has reached corners of the Earth that other Western companies have been unable to. It is huge in South America and Asia and contains an incalculable amount of content. YouTube has said over 4,000 hours of videos are uploaded onto the site every minute.
The reason for its vast popularity is that it simply hosts everything. So even if your tastes are niche, you will find something on YouTube that will interest you. Ultimately, that is where the success lies and how it has risen to such incredible levels of popularity.
There are generations of highly successful YouTubers who obtained millions of subscribers. Individuals such as Logan Paul and KSI have gone on to achieve global fame due to the platform YouTube provided for them.
Paul has fought boxing legend Floyd Mayweather and has joined the professional WWE ranks.
The colossal success has created different generations of YouTubers, and it is still a staggeringly profitable source of income for creators with millions of subscribers.
It can be a reliable news source for other people across the globe. For example, massive international news, such as the death of Prince Philip, will have been broadcast worldwide through YouTube to remote places that don’t have access to television sets but have access to smartphones.
Conclusion
YouTube have such a vast and respected brand name you can be anywhere on the planet, and it’d be challenging to find someone who hasn’t heard of YouTube. Furthermore, since it is the second most viewed website and continues to innovate and stay on top, YouTube could be with us for the next 100 years.
A new generation of YouTube creators is coming through, all looking to tap into the vast advertising revenue. Of course, there are new channels and media streams, such as successful podcasts uploading all of their video content through YouTube.
It is hard to see any other video streaming website challenging YouTube as the number one media website for a long time.
