I watch Youtube almost exclusively on TV. It's great as a cable replacement. The key for me was when my new TV actually had a decent built in TV OS and hardware. So scrolling and using the app isn't painful like it has been on past TVs or external plugin devices.
More users are watching YouTube on TV than mobile
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Re: More users are watching YouTube on TV than mobile
#32I wonder what the actual numbers are, especially considering PC viewers. My guess is that it's something like 15% on mobile, 16% on TV, and 69% on desktop/laptop etc. At least if you consider played minutes. I know many people watch short clips etc. on their phone, but the sheer amount of people watching let's plays while working, or streaming lo-fi music while coding is probably immense compared to that
> people watching let's plays while working Is that something people who aren't streamers actually do? I don't think I've seen that in person, ever, but then maybe I'm not the most social creature out there so might just be my bubble. Personally, I only watch YouTube on the TV. When I'm on the computer I'm either working, gaming or reading, the phone only gets used for phone/texting and social media while in the bath…
yeah, don't know, it was just an example. People stream YouTube while doing other things (playing, working, coding) all the time. I didn't want to put too much focus on the "Let's Play" part, it was the first thing that came to my mind :)
We have a handful of coders in our company and it's rare to enter their offices and not see something playing on the second screen.
Re: More users are watching YouTube on TV than mobile
#33I watch youtube 90% of the time I used to watch cable TV or Netflix. It is much better: most interesting TV shows are already on the platform and I can choose what to watch based on my interests, not on what the TV channel is scheduling.
Re: More users are watching YouTube on TV than mobile
#34- Youtube pre-installed on smart TVs everywhere - Bigger screens are more enjoyable - Much lesser strain on hands compared to holding a phone means longer periods of watching - More friction in switching apps on a TV compared to a phone and unless you are casting, much smaller selection of apps - Fewer distractions like notifications on a phone - Sofas are comfy; also, autoplay can keep going even if you fall asleep…
Another key one - more TV-length, high production value content on YouTube. The platform doesn't have 3 minute home recordings anymore. Videos by top creators nowadays rival budgets of major TV shows and movies.
> The platform doesn't have 3 minute home recordings anymore
I suspect it does (not least because I know I've uploaded a few) but you're going to have to search hard to find them.
(Although I guess that brings up the "if you can't find them, do they even really exist outside of the uploader?" question.)
Re: More users are watching YouTube on TV than mobile
#35I wonder how similar is the TV user experience and the content that gets watched there - to the desktop/mobile user experience and content. Is anyone here using YouTube in both contexts? Personally I watch on my laptop or iPhone; I usually look at reviews or short tutorials, I often fast forward, stop mid clip, or switch to another window - which is also why I don't watch YouTube on a TV at all.
I use YouTube in 3 contexts, mobile, laptop and TV. Since the remote slows down my inputs the most I watch longer content (e.g 20 minute or longer videos) on TV. I do notice that YouTube plays longer ads, somewhere around a minute’s worth, on TV. They likely realized that consumers are used to putting up with long commercial breaks in this medium.
> They likely realized that consumers are used to putting up with long commercial breaks in this medium.
And you can't really install ad-blockers to skip / block either.
Re: More users are watching YouTube on TV than mobile
#36I watch youtube 90% of the time I used to watch cable TV or Netflix. It is much better: most interesting TV shows are already on the platform and I can choose what to watch based on my interests, not on what the TV channel is scheduling.
Youtube scratches the same itch that Discovery / History / Science Channel used to, but way better.
Re: More users are watching YouTube on TV than mobile
#37Earlier quoted context omitted.
I turn it on at night and listen to 8-10 hours of sleep sounds.
What are "sleep sounds"? Like sounds of others sleeping? Do you experience silence anything during the day or any other time? I couldn't imagine having sounds while trying to sleep, it's my quiet time when I can fully focus on what's inside my head, and outside sounds tend to be distracting. But still interesting how we all are very different, no right or wrong :)
12 hours of a Warp Core.
Re: More users are watching YouTube on TV than mobile
#38How much of this is due to TikTok siphoning off mobile users?
Re: More users are watching YouTube on TV than mobile
#39I wonder how similar is the TV user experience and the content that gets watched there - to the desktop/mobile user experience and content. Is anyone here using YouTube in both contexts? Personally I watch on my laptop or iPhone; I usually look at reviews or short tutorials, I often fast forward, stop mid clip, or switch to another window - which is also why I don't watch YouTube on a TV at all.
TV experience is vastly inferior to mobile. If you watch YouTube on Apple TV, they definitely make it known you're a second class citizen. The app is clunky, slow and the video player isn't the easiest to scrub (especially if you want to navigate "chapters"). Also it's baffling how you can't use YouTube as a music app with repeat/shuffle controls even though they have a dedicated "Music" section.
Re: More users are watching YouTube on TV than mobile
#40This feels more significant than I'd expect it to? We are dominated by reporting about how our phones are growing to define our interactions with media. To have a trend that is bucking that is surprising.
I wouldn't say this is a sign of declining mobile usage, but rather that people have YouTube videos playing constantly on the TV while they're scrolling around on their phone.