YouTube celebrates 20 years of disrupting how we watch

All right, so here we are, one of the elephants

Behold, the first ever video uploaded to YouTube with 355 million views, 10 million comments, and uploaded exactly 20 years ago as of Wednesday

YouTube is celebrating two decades in existence and they're releasing the numbers that tell the story of its rise to digital dominance

In a Wednesday blog post, the platform shared some record-breaking stats. 20 million videos are uploaded every single day, over 20 billion videos have been uploaded in total, and 300 music videos have entered the Billion Views Club

But YouTube is more than a platform for video uploads. In 2017, the company launched YouTube TV, a live streaming service that now includes over 100 channels, unlimited DVR, and even custom multi-view coming soon for members

It's grown into a full-fledged streaming contender, competing right alongside other platforms

In fact, YouTube took the top spot for US TV viewing this February, outperforming even Netflix and Disney+

And according to CNBC, it's right on track to become the highest-grossing media company by revenue

But as for what many people originally know about YouTube, that content has changed the game just as much

Back in 2009, the first channel to hit 1 million subscribers was Fred, a fictional, fast-talking kid created by Lucas Cruikshank

Hey, it's Fred, and I'm gonna go grocery shopping! It was a different era. Low-res webcams, skits, and unfiltered viral energy

Then came the 2010s Creators like Ray William Johnson and Jenna Marbles defined early comedy on the platform And welcome to my tutorial on how to trip people into thinking you really good looking

And in 2012, Psy's Gangnam Style became the first video to gross one billion views

Fast forward to today and creators like MrBeast have completely redefined what it means to be a YouTuber

He started by streaming Minecraft and giving advice on how to succeed on YouTube

By 2018, he was known for stunts, challenges, and charity giveaways. And today, he's the most subscribed creator

on the platform with over 386 million subscribers. His latest feat was launching a competition series

on Amazon Prime, which quickly became their most watched unscripted show ever

But it's not just big names dominating anymore because YouTube's 2024 trends and fandom report

highlights how niche communities are driving major viewership. They highlight one creator who built a following

around Taylor Swift lyrics and charm bracelets and another focused entirely on trucks

scraping against a low bridge in North Carolina. To mark its 20th anniversary, YouTube announced

a slew of new features rolling out soon, like a custom multi-view for YouTube TV

and new TV upgrades coming this summer for easier navigation. YouTube's audience spans generations

A 2023 Pew Research report found that 95% of teenagers watch YouTube

But older generations are catching on, too, with Nielsen reporting a doubling in viewership among adults 65 and older in just two years

With Straight Arrow News, I'm Kennedy Felton. Download our app or visit san.com for more