YouTube Original Channel Initiative explained

The YouTube Original Channel Initiative was a $100 million program funded by Google in 2012 to bring original content onto YouTube.[1] [2] The original channel initiative was also meant to kick start Google TV.[3] The channels are collectively known as "original", "premium" or "YouTube funded" channels.

Participants include Madonna, Pharrell Williams, Young Hollywood founder R.J. Williams, former NBA star Shaquille O'Neal, comedian Amy Poehler, actor Ashton Kutcher, The Office star Rainn Wilson, comedian Kenny Hotz, Motor Trend, SourceFed, spiritual doctor Deepak Chopra and Modern Family actress Sofia Vergara. Most created channels through their production companies. Madonna is a partner with the dance channel DanceOn, while O'Neal plans the Comedy Shaq Network.

History

In September 2012, twenty of the 100 original channels started getting at least 1 million views a week.[4]

In October 2012, it was announced that YouTube introduced 60 new original channels.[5] Google invested $200 million into the original programming as well.[6] The top 25 original programs also averaged around 1 million views per week at the time of the announcement.[7]

In November 2012, YouTube ended funding for more than 60% of the 160 or so channels it financed as part of the initiative.[8] After cancellation, YouTube kept all incoming revenue from these channels that failed to recoup their initial investments.

In November 2013, it was reported that the landing page for the original channels had become a redirect to a 404 error page, seemingly as a way for Google to remove any reference to the original channel initiative.[9]

Content

The content of the YouTube Original Channel Initiative includes SourceFed, Young Hollywood, The Mom's View, The Wall Street Journal, Museum of Contemporary Art, Los Angeles,[10] Crash Course, BadTeeth, i am OTHER, The Pet Collective, Epic Level TV, Geek & Sundry, MyMusic, Frederator Networks' Cartoon Hangover, The Spangler Effect, and The Multiverse among several others.[1] [11] [12]

One of Tubefilter's articles includes a full list of the original channels,[1] which differs from YouTube's listing.[13]

Deadline Hollywood started tracking the weekly video view stats for all the channels part of YouTube's Original Channel Initiative in May 2012.[14]

Notes and References

  1. Web site: Marc Hustvedt. YouTube Reveals Original Channels. Tubefilter. Oct 28, 2011. Jul 7, 2012. https://web.archive.org/web/20120619221732/http://www.tubefilter.com/2011/10/28/youtube-original-channels/. June 19, 2012. live.
  2. News: Ryan Nakashima. YouTube launching 100 new channels. USA Today. Oct 29, 2011. Jul 7, 2012. https://web.archive.org/web/20120628134840/http://www.usatoday.com/tech/news/story/2011-10-29/youtube-original-programming/50997002/1. June 28, 2012. live.
  3. Web site: Devindra Hardawar. YouTube’s original channels could be Google TV’s killer app. Venture Beat. Oct 30, 2011. Jul 7, 2012. https://web.archive.org/web/20120630160800/http://venturebeat.com/2011/10/30/youtube-original-content-google-tv/. June 30, 2012. live.
  4. Web site: Sam Gutelle. 20% of YouTube Original Channels Achieving One Million Views a Week. Tubefilter. September 19, 2012. September 22, 2012. https://web.archive.org/web/20120922025158/http://www.tubefilter.com/2012/09/19/youtube-original-channels-initiative-views-subscribers/. September 22, 2012. live.
  5. Web site: Annlee Ellingson. YouTube goes global with more original channels. https://web.archive.org/web/20140311092639/http://www.bizjournals.com/losangeles/news/2012/10/08/youtube-goes-global-with-more-original.html?page=all. 2014-03-11. Biz Journals. October 9, 2012. October 10, 2012.
  6. News: Claire Cain Miller. YouTube to Serve Niche Tastes by Adding Channels. The New York Times. October 7, 2012. October 10, 2012. https://web.archive.org/web/20121011014459/http://www.nytimes.com/2012/10/08/business/media/youtube-to-serve-niche-tastes-by-adding-channels.html?_r=0. October 11, 2012. live.
  7. Web site: Robert Kyncl. Robert Kyncl. YouTube's original channels go global. The Official YouTube Blog. October 7, 2012. October 10, 2012. https://web.archive.org/web/20121010032846/http://youtube-global.blogspot.com/2012/10/youtubes-original-channels-go-global.html. October 10, 2012. live.
  8. Web site: YouTube to cull poorly-performing original channels, 60 percent not getting renewed. The Verge. 25 April 2017. 11 November 2012. https://web.archive.org/web/20170426060017/http://www.theverge.com/2012/11/11/3633464/youtube-original-channel-cancel-60-percent. 26 April 2017. live.
  9. Web site: Sam Gutelle. YouTube Has Removed All References To Its Original Channels Initiative. Tubefilter. November 12, 2013. November 17, 2013. https://web.archive.org/web/20131116170416/http://www.tubefilter.com/2013/11/12/youtube-original-channels-initiative-experiment-end/. November 16, 2013. live.
  10. News: Randy Kennedy. Museum of Contemporary Art to Create Original Programming for YouTube. The New York Times. January 18, 2012. Dec 3, 2014. https://web.archive.org/web/20150403085519/http://artsbeat.blogs.nytimes.com/2012/01/18/museum-of-contemporary-art-to-create-original-programming-for-youtube/. April 3, 2015. live.
  11. News: Alexei Oreskovic. YouTube covets TV gold with new channels. Reuters. May 2, 2012. Jul 7, 2012. https://web.archive.org/web/20120702214643/http://www.reuters.com/article/2012/05/02/entertainment-us-youtube-idUSBRE8401P320120502. July 2, 2012. live.
  12. Eriq Gardner. Upfronts 2012: YouTube Announces New Channels. Hollywood Reporter. May 2, 2012. Jul 7, 2012. https://web.archive.org/web/20120823104257/http://www.hollywoodreporter.com/news/upfronts-2012-youtube-google-319445. August 23, 2012. live.
  13. Web site: YouTube Original Channels. https://web.archive.org/web/20130903132143/http://youtube.com/yt/advertise/original-channels.html. 2013-09-03. YouTube. Jul 8, 2012.
  14. Web site: The Deadline Team. New Feature: Deadline’s Weekly YouTube Channel Rankings. Deadline Hollywood. May 29, 2012. Jul 8, 2012. https://web.archive.org/web/20120705163715/http://www.deadline.com/2012/05/new-feature-deadlines-weekly-youtube-channel-rankings/. July 5, 2012. live.

This article is licensed under the GNU Free Documentation License. It uses material from the Wikipedia article "YouTube Original Channel Initiative".

Except where otherwise indicated, Everything.Explained.Today is © Copyright 2009-2024, A B Cryer, All Rights Reserved. Cookie policy.