Youtube: What is it and what influence has it had?

by Joost Nusselder Updated on: October 12, 2022

What is YouTube? A question you may have asked before. And for good reason, because it started VERY differently than you might think.

Youtube is an online video platform, based on uploading and viewing videos. The slogan is YouTube, Broadcast Yourself. YouTube was founded in February 2005 by three PayPal employees as an online dating platform, but soon evolved into a video-sharing platform. Youtube became owned by Google in 2006.

In this article I will tell you everything about Youtube, what you can do with it and how it originated.

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YouTube: It's more than just watching videos

YouTube is one website from Google where users can upload and watch videos for free. It was founded in 2005 and now has almost 2 billion monthly users worldwide. In the Netherlands, YouTube has more than 9,1 million users, of which 2,8 million visit the platform every day. Most users are between 15 and 39 years old.

The basics of YouTube: Share and watch videos

The basis of YouTube is sharing and watching videos. The first video, 'Me at the zoo', was uploaded by co-founder Jawed Karim on April 23, 2005. You can easily share videos via social media, email, Messages or WhatsApp, or by sending a shortened link. You can also add videos to a playlist or save them for later viewing.

YouTube is more than just watching

YouTube is more than just watching. You can also interact with it. You can leave comments, like and share videos, and even upload your own videos. You can also create videos with special effects and filters, and edit your videos with various tools. Once you've created a video, you can then share it with the entire internet.

How YouTube started

The founders

YouTube.com was founded in February 2005 by Chad Hurley, Steve Chen and Jawed Karim. They all worked at PayPal and already had a background in the computer industry with Jhxgames.

The idea

They actually wanted to start a dating platform where people could share videos about themselves to show their daily life, which gave him the idea to create a website where anyone could share videos. On February 14, 2005, the domain name YouTube was registered.

The launch

In April 2005 the website was set up step by step. The first video, 'Me at the Zoo', was uploaded by Karim herself on April 23, 2005. In December 2005, YouTube was officially launched.

People started uploading videos in droves, but not about dating but just about other things they went through to share with friends and family.

Then they decided to market the platform as a video sharing platform, and with great success.

The growth

YouTube quickly grew in popularity and in 2006 the site was already in the top 10 most visited websites worldwide. Some 65.000 videos were uploaded per day and more than 100 million videos were viewed per day.

The take over

In November 2006, YouTube was acquired by Google for $1,65 billion.

Further developments

From 2007, companies could earn money from advertising revenue when showing videos. In 2009 videos could be offered in HD quality. In 2010, more than 2 billion videos were viewed per day. In 2011, Google+ was integrated into YouTube. In 2012, YouTube's design was completely overhauled. And in 2013 YouTube got a separate version for each country.

YouTube: a global phenomenon with social consequences

YouTube is a global phenomenon that has forever changed the way we consume media. But with all that viewing pleasure comes a number of social consequences.

Blockades in different countries

YouTube is blocked in several countries. Turkmenistan, Turkey, Iran, Brazil and Pakistan have all blocked the website at one time or another. This was also the case in China because of videos about human rights violations in Tibet. In Thailand, YouTube was blocked from March 8 to August 30, 2007, but the reasons were not made clear. In Turkey, YouTube was blocked from 2007 to 2011 for videos allegedly insulting founder Atatürk.

Royalty

There is sometimes illegal image material on the site that is subject to copyright. That's why companies regularly file lawsuits against YouTube, including the Premier League, for unlawful use of football images. To counter this, Google has introduced a copyright filter that checks all videos for their digital fingerprint. According to a 2013 OpenDataCity study, YouTube had the highest copyright enforcement in Germany.

Videos with shocking content

In November 2017, YouTube removed 150.000 videos from its own site in which children were abused and abused. Many large companies temporarily removed their advertisements from YouTube in response to the videos.

Fine violation of privacy

Google and YouTube have been fined US$170 million following a suit filed by the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) and the New York State Attorney's Office. The regulator found that YouTube was collecting personal information about viewers of child-oriented channels, without first notifying parents and seeking their consent. This is the largest fine ever under the US Children's Online Privacy Protection Act.

YouTube: What is it and what can you do with it?

HTML5 Videos

YouTube supports HTML5 for all videos. In addition, you can watch videos in 4K resolution and with a frame rate of 60 frames per second.

Channels

You can subscribe to any channels. This will immediately notify you when a new video has been uploaded. When you reach 100.000 subscribers, you get a Silver Play Button. At 1.000.000 a gold, at 10.000.000 a diamond, at 50.000.000 a ruby ​​and at 100.000.000 a red diamond.

upload

To upload videos, you must first create a username and YouTube channel. You can upload a video via a web form. This can be up to 20 GB in size. You can also use the free audio library with music and sound effects. Since June 2011 it is possible to upload videos under a Creative Commons license.

Earnings for the uploader

The content creator gets a share of the advertising revenue that YouTube receives. You can also promote products, use product placement or sell merchandise. In 2019, 2020 and 2021, YouTube handed out a total of $ 30 billion to two million creators.

play

You can play a video on YouTube.com, but you can also embed it in a web page.

YouTube's terms: what you need to know

The most important

If you have a YouTube channel, you are bound by YouTube's terms. That means YouTube has the right to publish your videos. If you violate community guidelines or copyrights, you can get a strike. If you get three strikes within a certain period of time, your channel will be terminated.

How it works

If you get a complaint, you get a strike. If you get three strikes within a certain period of time, your channel will be terminated. Then all videos and reactions to them will disappear, you will no longer be able to post new videos and all subscriptions will expire. If, after further consideration and reconsideration, the complaints prove to be unfounded or at least less serious, YouTube may reverse the termination.

The last word

It's important to abide by YouTube's terms. If you violate community guidelines or copyrights, you could get a strike. If you get three strikes within a certain period of time, your channel will be terminated. But if after further consideration and reconsideration the complaints turn out to be unfounded or at least less serious, YouTube can reverse the termination.

What is a YouTube Influencer?

The short version

A YouTube Influencer is a person who creates and publishes content on YouTube and who has a large following. They are often employed and paid to promote products that align with their channel.

The long version

A YouTube Influencer is an influential person who creates and publishes content on YouTube. They usually specialize in a certain category (e.g. travel, games, fashion, technology or beauty) and have a large following who are interested in the topics covered by the influencer.

For that reason, influencers are often employed and paid to promote products that align with their channel. The amount they receive for a promoted post starts at a few hundred euros for a medium-sized influencer, up to amounts in the tens of thousands of euros for a promoted post by a top influencer. In addition, influencers also earn per view of a video. That amount gets everyone with a little current channel, assume about one euro per thousand views (estimate).

How do you become a YouTube Influencer?

Do you also want to become a YouTube Influencer? Then you need time and perseverance. Here are a few tips to get you started:

• Choose a topic that you feel good about and that you can talk a lot about.
• Make sure your content is interesting and unique.
• Promote your channel on various social media channels.
• Interact with your followers.
• Stay consistent with uploading content.

YouTube TV: The ultimate streaming service for 2020

YouTube itself calls YouTube TV the “best all-encompassing TVstreaming service of 2020″. And that is not without reason! With YouTube TV you get access to more than 70 TV channels, sports and news channels, without the need for a setup box, contracts or hidden costs. Plus, you also get access to on-demand services, playback and recording. Unfortunately, YouTube TV is (still) only available in America.

Get access with the whole family

For $49,99 per month you can access YouTube TV with the whole family (6 accounts). That is an excellent alternative to the recent prices for television subscriptions in the Netherlands.

Enjoy the best streaming service

With YouTube TV you get access to the best streaming service of 2020. Watch more than 70 TV channels, sports and news channels live, without a setup box, contracts or hidden costs. Plus, you also get access to on-demand services, playback and recording. What else do you want?

Enjoy YouTube ad-free with YouTube Premium

YouTube Premium gives you an ad-free YouTube experience, plus the ability to download videos and music offline and play them in the background. And best of all? It is also available in the Netherlands!

Choose your plan

You can choose from two subscriptions: an individual subscription and a family subscription. Both plans give you ad-free access to YouTube and YouTube Music, unlimited downloads, and the ability to play videos and music in the background. The only difference is that you can use the features with the family subscription with 6 accounts (within one household).

Conclusion

As you have now read, Youtube is now much more than just sharing videos. You can do a LOT of things with it and even sign up as a creator.

So, it's great to create an account and get started with it yourself.

Joost Nusselder, the founder of Speelkeuze.nl is a content marketer, father and loves trying out new toys. As a child he came into contact with everything related to games when his mother started the Tinnen Soldaat in Ede. Now he and his team create helpful blog articles to help loyal readers with fun play ideas.