History of YouTube – how it all started and its continuous rise

Undoubtedly, YouTube is the largest video platform available out there. It has been more than fifteen years since the world's biggest video-sharing platform YouTube, was launched. 

Briefly, it is quite a big deal. YouTube is our daily source of entertainment. It allows users to upload, play, and share videos on numerous topics, starting from entertainment and education to politics and music. Users can develop their own channels, subscribe to different channels, and engage with the YouTube community via likes, comments, and shares. 

It also has become a crucial tool for businesses, content creators, and advertisers, to utilize YouTube features to reach a worldwide audience and promote their services and products. However, the question still remains, where did the idea for YouTube stem from and how did it become the monopoly as it is currently?

Back in 2005, Google Inc., the American search engine company launched a video service, Google Video however it failed to develop much traffic. 

Who founded YouTube?

It was the idea of the three intelligent youngsters, Jawed Karim, Steve Chen, and Chad Hurley who crossed each other's path and became friends over time while working for an American Banking service. The three friends come from very distinct backgrounds building them a perfect team for creating something big. Hurley pursued design at the Indiana University of Pennsylvania, and Karim and Chen studied computer science together at Urbana-Champaign at the University of Illions However, at the very same year they quit their jobs to take up their passion to bring a change to the world. 

History of YouTube

It was founded in 2005 by three former employees of PayPal. The idea for creating the website appeared from their own experiences who were trying to share videos with family and friends online. 

Well, the first ever video uploaded to YouTube has been titled 'Me at the Zoo', featuring co-founder Jawed Karim, at the San Deigo Zoo. It was uploaded in 2005, 23rd April, and managed to gather more than 150 million views on the platform. 

The original idea 

Jawed Karim stated during his interview about YouTube’s origin, “We didn’t even know how to describe our new product. To generate interest, we just said it was a new kind of dating site. We even had a slogan: ” Tune in, Hook up.” YouTube initially set its position as an online dating platform, 'Tune in, Hook up'. The online dating site allows users to upload their video shorts and share them for free. The platform helped the consumers to decide whether they wanted to go on a date with the person or not.

Also Read: Everything You Need To Know About YouTube TV: Plans, Pricing & Cancellation

Pivot 

The unsuccessful positioning put pressure on the founders as they had the brilliant infrastructure to host videos, which cost $100 monthly but none uploaded any video.  They were very desperate they finalized any videos would perform better than no video at all. So, Karim started uploading videos of airplane landings and take-offs. 

YouTube’s official Beta launch 

Right after the re-launch, YouTube appeared available for the public in a 'beta' phase from May 2005. YouTube was acting as 'Your Digital Video Repository' to its consumers. In 2005's September, a user posted a Nike promo video of the Brazilian footballer Ronaldinho bragging about his ball juggling skills on YouTube. 

Features of YouTube

YouTube contains various features that create it an exceptional and famous platform for video sharing and viewing, including:

    • Channel development : 

Anyone can create their channels on YouTube to display their videos and curate content from other consumers. 

    • Sharing videos:

The platform allows users to share videos on social media platforms, set them on websites, or send them through email. 

    • Subscription:

It allows the users to subscribe to channels they like to get updates on the latest videos and content.

    • Likes and dislikes:

Consumers can like or dislike videos to show their preferences and it helps others to discover new and refreshing content.

    • Commenting:

Users can comment on videos to interact with the creators of the content and other views as well. 

    • Exploring and discovery:

Its search and discovery elements make it simple to track down new content based on the preferences of users, trending topics, and viewing history.

    • Live streaming:

YouTube allows users to live stream performances, events, and other content as well.

    • Monetization:

Content creators can optimize their videos via advertising sponsorships, revenue, merchandise sales, and other means as well. 

Impact of YouTube

YouTube has a stand-out impact on what we consume and share online video content. The user-friendly interface, social sharing, and massive video library features have managed to reach a platform for entertainment, information, and education purposes.

Moreover, it has become a strong tool for businesses, content creators, and advertisers who make fine use of the platform to reach a worldwide audience and promote their services and products. 

The growth of YouTube creators and influencers has also given growth to the latest sorts of content like vlogs, reaction videos, and challenges. The content creators have become celebrities in their talent, along with millions of followers and alluring sponsorship deals. 

Controversies around YouTube 

Regardless of its fame, YouTube has suffered a handful of controversies throughout the years, including issues with hate speech, misinformation, and copyright infringement. YouTube was criticized for its controversial content management, specifically around conspiracy theories and political issues. It has also faced controversies for its optimization policies which were blamed for rewarding creators, and promoting harmful and controversial content. Additionally, it has experienced backlash for its algorithmic recommendations. 

YouTube’s business model based on ad and subscription

    1. YouTube Premium

    2. Channel membership

    3. YouTube TV

    4. Pay per View

    5. Adsense

YouTube studio 

The YouTube studio is a tool that YouTube offers for managing your channel. It features all the information asked to investigate a large data quantity. 

How it helps you?

The tool can help the user to improve in video marketing. To grow its advantages, you need to understand its elements. It has key features like – 

    a. View Analytics 

    b. Manage channels

    c. Program, edit, and upload videos

    d. Allow access for several users

    e. Playlists design

    f. Comment management

    g. Hide channel

    h. Subtitle videos

Premium subscription on YouTube

YouTube Premium which was previously known as YouTube Red, is a premium membership service that allows users to watch YouTube video advertisements for free and save offline viewing feature. 

A YouTube premium membership allows ad-free, screen, and offline access to YouTube Music, the music streaming service of the platform. 

The benefits of Premium

    • YouTube originals - You can get access to original elements, especially from prominent creators like films, documentaries, and television programs. 

    • Background play – In the case of watching a video on mobile, the audio will remain to play even if you leave the app on your phone's display.

    • Download videos – Videos and playlists can be downloaded and played offline on a tablet or a smartphone. 

Well, in the coming days, Google may introduce new features to premium, stay tuned for more!

Bottom line, 

YouTube has become a worldwide phenomenon, transforming the way we see, consume, and share things.