#2- Programming Trends

YouTube Red Programming Trends

So, I'm sure that everyone already knows what YouTube is and probably watches a few videos on there every day or occasionally. Over the years, YouTube has gone from a place where users posted random, entertaining content to a business where users can create careers and make money by just posting videos. YouTube is continuing to become more than a social media platform by creating their own streaming service that is similar to other video streaming services like Netflix and Hulu.

YouTube Red is YouTube's streaming service creation. For $9.99 a month, subscribers of YouTube Red have complete access to "uninterrupted music, ad-free videos, and more." YouTube subscribers have the option to try it free for a 1-month free trial. Single person subscribers pay $9.99 a month, but families that have up to 6 members have the option to purchase a $14.99 a month membership.

When it comes to the content that YouTube Red provides its subscribers, they offer services that deal with music and video. Subscribers can access the YouTube Music app, play music on all their devices and while exited out of the app, and download music for future, offline listening. As for video streaming, subscribers have access to ad-free videos and can download YouTube videos, similar to how they can download music from YouTube Music.

Alike Netflix, Hulu, and Amazon Prime who produce original programs, YouTube Red also releases its own original movies and series. Some of these movies and series are created by and feature popular YouTube creators. These programs were first released in February 2016. Unlike Netflix, Hulu, and Amazon Prime, YouTube Red's video library is all exclusive to the streaming service; they do not feature content that is not original to them. 

YouTube Red currently has 43 original programs (both movies and series) by YouTube creators like Buzzfeed and the Fine Brothers. YouTube Red movies and series feature a variety of genres, from drama to comedy to documentaries. CollegeHumor, a popular YouTube channel with over 12 million subscribers, created a YouTube Red series about an alternate society where Buzzfeed quizzes decide the societal group you belong in. YouTube creator Joey Graceffa created "a reality murder mystery series" called "Escape the Night" which features other popular YouTube creators as contestants. In addition to series, YouTube Red creates movies like "The Thinning," which is a teen dystopian movie starring social media influencer Logan Paul. YouTube also releases its own documentaries with one of its most recent being "Demi Lovato Simply Complicated" that focused on Demi Lovato's life and career over the past few years.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8FbQoI8P7c4

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2QyzjYqkj2U

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hrCWXmxqIzU

YouTube Red's programming is trying to speak to YouTube's main demographics today, which are those between the ages of 18-34 and 18-49. Statistics also show that milennials, especially those between the ages of 18-24, watch YouTube approximately two times more than regular TV. Teenagers and young adults will be attracted to YouTube Red's programming because it stars popular YouTube creators and other social media influences that may know and like. Throw in a variety of series/ in addition to these starring roles by influencers, and YouTube Red has a formula for success. The streaming service is still in its early years of operation, but it has the potential to grow and produce plenty of new programming over the coming years.

Full lists of YouTube Red's movies and series and their descriptions can be found here and here.