With online video consumption reaching new highs during the COVID-19 lockdowns, YouTube has announced a new slate of YouTube Original programming, featuring a range of high-profile celebrities and online influencers, which will help boost interest in YouTube’s exclusive offering.
As outlined by YouTube:
“Among the announcements, celebrities and educators come together to energize distance learning in “Celebrity Substitute” including Karlie Kloss working through a coding problem and Ken Jeong giving a Biology lesson; a weekly series “Stay Home With: YUNGBLUD,” following the UK recording artist and his band as they adjust to a remote lifestyle while creating music; a short-form family series, “Create Together #WithMe,” hosted by Joseph Gordon-Levitt featuring the creations of everyday people collaborating to make art on HITRECORD and YouTube while being at home; and “The Secret Life of Lele Pons” which gives an intimate look at battling Tourette Syndrome and OCD while juggling life in the spotlight.
YouTube’s also partnering with platform influencers on new live-streaming initiatives, while its also adding new YouTube Kids content to keep younger viewers entertained.
The new programs will, initially, be exclusively available to YouTube Premium and YouTube TV subscribers, with regular users able to view them, with ads, after the initial release period. That will enable YouTube to maximize viewership, and increase connection with audiences who are seeking out new things to watch at present.
Given that rising demand for video content, it makes sense for YouTube to push ahead with its new releases, and build on its popularity as a key destination for video content. Like Facebook Watch, YouTube’s exclusive content hasn’t, seemingly, gained huge traction as yet, but both platforms are slowly building their relative audiences, and essentially becoming TV replacements in their own right over time.
Maintaining a level of well-produced, original content is key to maximizing this opportunity, and these new programs will add to YouTube’s growth, which will better position it to provide new ad options and promotional tools moving forward.
You can read more about YouTube’s latest Originals here.
