YouTube Reaches $8.9 Billion, Celebrates 20th Anniversary, Announces New Video Upload Record

Video hosting site YouTube’s advertising revenue rose 10% to $8.9 billion, helping holding company Alphabet beat Wall Street’s first-quarter revenue expectations. The tech giant reported total revenue of $90.2 billion, up 12% from the same period last year.

Image source: Hamed Taha / Unsplash

YouTube continues to strengthen its position as one of the world’s leading advertising platforms, with YouTube TV becoming one of the largest pay TV operators in the US as users increasingly watch content on big screens rather than smartphones, Deadline reports.

In a statement, Alphabet noted “solid momentum” across all business segments. In addition to YouTube, Google Search, cloud services, and subscriptions, including Google One, all saw double-digit growth. CEO Sundar Pichai said the company’s total subscriptions reached 270 million.

But Alphabet’s success has been overshadowed by legal troubles. Earlier this month, a U.S. federal judge ruled that Google’s advertising business violated antitrust laws. The resulting action could lead to a breakup of the company, including a spinoff of the Chrome browser.

Experts note that despite the challenges, Alphabet is showing stable growth. Advertising revenues remain the main driver, and the development of YouTube TV and paid services provides additional sources of income. In the near future, the key issue for investors will be the decision of the antitrust court and its consequences for the company’s structure.

Alphabet shares rose 5% in after-hours trading after the company’s strong results, further evidence of the company’s resilience despite growing competition and changes in the media market. Meanwhile, analysts are raising their price targets in anticipation of continued growth in advertising and cloud revenue. Meanwhile, YouTube is celebrating its 20th anniversary by announcing a new all-time record of 20 billion videos uploaded to the platform.