News
Mid-year update on our five creator priorities for 2018
By Susan Wojcicki, CEO of YouTube
Dear YouTube Creators,
It’s hard to believe we’re already halfway through 2018. With 1.9 billion logged-in users coming to YouTube each month, our community continues to grow. More and more creators are building their businesses and discovering that they can shape the global conversation with just a phone and an internet connection. While mobile is one of the most popular ways fans enjoy content, more and more people are using their living room screens to watch their favorite creators. On average, users now watch over 180 million hours of YouTube on TV screens every day.
While the future is full of opportunity, it is not without challenges. One of the ways we make YouTube better is through testing and iterations, but we understand that sudden changes related to experiments are difficult to manage. So, in order to minimize the disruption for you, we will make our best effort to communicate with you as these tests approach and we’ll use your feedback to make the features better in the long run.
And now, here is an update on my five key priorities for 2018:
1. Transparency and Communication
We continue to prioritize communicating more with creators. We made a conscious effort to respond on social media, and we answered 600% more tweets through our official handles (@TeamYouTube, @YTCreators and @YouTube) in 2018 than in 2017 and grew our reach by 30% in the past few months. We’ve also built a new feature than enables us to deliver relevant information in YouTube Studio, formerly Creator Studio. In February, we began testing a new dashboard with a small group of creators, and we recently rolled out it out to all creators on the platform. The dashboard, which launched for all English channels and will soon be available in an additional 76 languages in the next two weeks, now gives you platform updates and news along with performance about your latest videos in one easy-to-find place.
Last year, I started my own channel with the goal of communicating more with creators and saw first-hand some of the challenges and opportunities of sharing my voice through video. Today, I’m posting a new video, along with this blog, updating you on the five key annual priorities. Additionally, Creator Insider, an unofficial channel started by YouTube employees, continues to offer weekly updates, responds to concerns, such as notifications, and provides a more behind-the-scenes look at some of our product launches. And most recently, we combined our Creator Academy and YouTube Creators channels, so that you can find both inspiration and education in one place: YouTube Creators.
2. Supporting your success
This year at VidCon we shared some exciting new products designed to grow and strengthen our communities and give you more ways to earn revenue in addition to ads, including:
Channel Memberships – Viewers pay a monthly recurring fee of $4.99 to get unique badges, new emojis, Members-only posts in the Community tab, and access to unique custom perks offered by creators, such as exclusive livestreams, extra videos, or shout-outs. We worked with a small group of creators to develop this service and are expanding it to eligible channels with more than 100,000 subscribers and even more creators in the coming months.
Merch – We’ve joined forces with Teespring so creators can choose from over 20 merchandise items to customize and sell via a shelf on their channel. This is available to all eligible U.S.-based channels with over 10,000 subscribers, with expanded merchandising partners and availability for creators coming soon.
Famebit – Acquired by Google in 2016, FameBit has been helping brands tap into YouTube’s audience by using creator’s authentic voices to develop unique branded content at scale. Over half of channels that used Famebit in the first three months of 2018 doubled their YouTube revenue. In the coming months, we’ll be launching a feature that will allow users to easily shop for products, apps or tickets directly from the creator watch page.
In addition to new products, we continue to invest in YouTube Originals as another way to help creators earn more revenue. Well over two-thirds of our Originals star YouTubers both in front of and behind the camera, and since we launched Originals three years ago, we’ve seen their success have a ripple effect on creators. Some creators have seen as much as a 20 percent increase in channel viewership after their Original has launched.
Finally, one of my biggest priorities is to show advertisers the incredible opportunities on YouTube to tap into engaged communities and extend their reach. We’ve been working hard on brand safety and meeting with the biggest brands in the world to share your incredible stories and the progress we’re making together. The results have been positive, and I continue to make this a priority.
3. Giving people more ways to engage
One of the greatest strengths of the platform is enabling two-way conversations between creators and fans and fans to fans. We’ve been working hard to build out the different ways to enable interactions on YouTube and seeing results. Our overall interactions, such as likes, comments and chats, grew by more than 60% year over year.
Our Community Tab continues to be a one-stop shop for growing and engaging with fans. Visible across the platform, these posts let you move beyond just video to build even deeper connections with fans through GIFs, pics, polls, and text. Every day, over sixty million users click into or engage with Community posts.
Livestreaming continues to be an area of growth for creators, with watchtime of livestreams increasing by 10X over the last three years. At VidCon, we launchedPremieres to help creators take advantage of the popularity of live tools, such as Super Chat and scheduling, by allowing them to debut pre-recorded videos as a live moment on YouTube.
We’re also seeing more creators use Stories, a simple way of posting videos without editing or post-production, to engage with their fans as well. We have some key improvements coming soon and later this year, we will expand stories to all eligible creators with more than ten thousand subscribers.
4. Tightening and enforcing our policies
Earlier this year, we released the first YouTube Community Guidelines Enforcement Report and we’ll be updating this regularly with new data. We just released the newest update in late June, which you can read here.
We also announced our new Copyright Match tool, which uses the matching power of Content ID to help creators find copies of your content when it’s been uploaded by other channels. This will be offered to all creators, including those who are not part of a multi-channel network (MCN). We’ve been testing this tool with a thousand creators over the last year to tailor it to your specific needs and is a great complement to the range of copyright tools we provide.
5. Learning and education
Education is one of the greatest benefits of YouTube. Everyday, people watch learning-related content over a billion times and they’re using it to develop new skills and encourage their passions. I’m proud to announce a new initiative, YouTube Learning, through which we’re providing grants and promotion to support education focused creator content, expert organizations and learners. We’re also expanding our learning content team efforts and have a newly dedicated product and engineering team working on building out features for learning on YouTube. Our hope is to support those who use YouTube to share their knowledge with the world and the millions of users who come to our platform to learn.
Looking forward
As our devices have become an increasingly important part of our lives, we want to support digital wellbeing. When we rolled out the YouTube Kids app, we included a timer that parents could use to limit the time their children spent in the app. We have since realized that a timer could also be helpful for adults. So, within the broader YouTube app, we’ve launched a feature that sends users a reminder to take a break. We’ve also added an option for users to get a single digest notification once per day from YouTube rather than at the moment notifications, and we enabled users to configure their notifications so that they happen within specific timeframes.
As we head into the second half of the year, I look forward to continuing to work with you to create communities and engage with people using video. You are building the next generation of media companies, and I’m humbled by the amazing work you do every day.
NEW DELHI: Yotta Data Services, an end-to-end Digital Transformation service provider, has announced that its state-of-the-art data centre facility, “Yotta G1”, located in GIFT city, Gandhinagar is ready for service (RFS).
The opening of this data center marks the debut of Yotta in Gujarat and progresses the company’s mission to provide digital services in India’s high-growth markets.
G1 is Yotta’s fifth data center facility in the country. It joins four large operational data centers, two of which, at Navi Mumbai and Greater Noida are part of hyperscale campuses. Yotta G1 is uniquely located inside the International Financial Services Center (IFSC) zone of Gandhinagar’s Gujarat International Finance Tec-City (GIFT city).
G1 represents an investment of more than INR 500 cr. over five years across critical non-IT and IT / Cloud / AI compute infrastructure. The data center has a capacity of over 350 high-density racks and 2 MW power (which can be scaled further as per demand). The facility is designed to meet the most demanding digital needs of its customers, who may be located within GIFT City or anywhere in the world, by seamlessly delivering fault-tolerant facility infrastructure, high-performance Cloud compute and storage infrastructure, advanced physical and cyber security, unmatched connectivity, and steadfast sustainability.
For large global enterprises operating in the GIFT City IFSC zone, the G1 data center functions as a potential data embassy, whereby their data stored is subject to the laws and regulations of their home country, thus allowing them to maintain sovereignty over their data, even when stored in India. By storing data in a physically different location, global enterprises can ensure continuity of operations in case of major disruptions within their borders. The data center’s location also ensures compliance with the IFSC regulations, providing businesses in the zone with distinct advantages like free foreign exchange convertibility, a liberalised regulatory environment, and business-friendly policies. It also helps enterprises adhere to IFSC’s compliance requirements, including being mandated to host their data within the IFSC zone.
Commenting on the announcement, Darshan Hiranandani, Co-founder and Chairman, Yotta Data Services, said, “The state of Gujarat, with GIFT City, has been at the forefront of providing a viable and sustainable platform for global businesses to set up base in India. The setting up of the IFSC zone is a further testament to their vision for financial services companies. We are proud to support this vision of the Gujarat government with a state-of-the-art data center within the IFSC zone, providing the latest and best in cutting-edge technologies to help businesses set up and scale their businesses while also adhering to all regulatory requirements.”
Adding to this, Sunil Gupta, Co-Founder, MD & CEO, Yotta Data Services, said, “Yotta’s G1 marks a pivotal milestone in delivering high-end data center, Cloud, AI compute, storage, connectivity and cybersecurity services to enterprises both on a global and local scale in the Gujarat region. Besides serving the domestic enterprises within and outside GIFT City, our data center shall serve as a potential data embassy for global enterprises, enabling them to adhere to their respective country’s laws while offering a dependable and secure locale for offshore data storage.”
G1 data centre stands distinct in GIFT city for being a data center offering more than just colocation services. True to Yotta’s stature as the end-to-end digital transformation partner of choice for enterprises, G1 brings forth a suite of key features, ranging from advanced data security and customised business solutions to an indigenous hyperscale cloud offering, AI-GPU compute offering, state-of-the-art infrastructure, cybersecurity expertise, seamless integration with managed IT services, 24/7 customer support, cost optimisation, and an overall competitive edge.
This announcement follows on the heels of Yotta’s recent launch of its cloud services – Shakti Cloud and Yntraa Cloud. Powered by NVIDIA’s top-of-the-line GPUs, Shakti Cloud is India’s largest & fastest AI-HPC supercomputer, delivering cutting-edge GPU computing infrastructure, platforms, and services, including Infrastructure as a Service, Platform as a Service, and Software as a Service. Yntraa Cloud, on the other hand, is a truly indigenous hyperscale cloud platform at par with global cloud platforms, offering an exhaustive range of cloud products and services.
NEW DELHI: Domestic contract manufacturer Optiemus Infracom has entered into a joint venture with US-based speciality glassmaker Corning International to set up India’s first manufacturing facility for producing high-quality finished cover glass parts for the mobile consumer electronics industry.
The collaboration between both the companies will help expand India’s electronics manufacturing ecosystem, as the Indian government strengthens its Make in India initiative. As a part of the joint venture, the companies strategically aim to set up a world-class manufacturing facility in India, powered by cutting-edge technologies and processes.
Driven by a shared commitment to innovation and technological excellence, this collaboration will pave the way for the manufacturing of “Made in India” finished cover glass parts for use in mobile consumer electronic devices, and other cover glass applications, to meet the needs of next-generation mobile consumer electronic devices.
The joint venture signifies a powerful synergy between Optiemus’s deep domestic industry and manufacturing knowledge of electronics and telecom market and Corning’s globally-acclaimed expertise in advanced glass technology. By combining these strengths, the joint venture aspires to not only establish cover glass manufacturing capabilities and capacity in India, but also to contribute significantly to the creation of jobs and skill development within India’s thriving technology sector, the companies said in a statement.
Ashok Kumar Gupta, Chairman, Optiemus Infracom, said, “It is a matter of great pride for us to actively contribute to the growing manufacturing ecosystem in the country. With this joint venture, initiated in line with the vision of Hon’ble Prime Minister of India of ‘Make in India’ programme and the “Atmanirbhar Bharat” initiative, we are committed to make available world-class high-quality products for global and local brands.”
“Embarking on this new journey, we intend to emerge as one of the top manufacturers of finished cover glass parts for use in mobile consumer electronic devices in the next five years. Our collective expertise in innovation, design, and manufacturing, will provide holistic solutions for the brands,” Gupta added.
NEW DELHI: Chipset maker MediaTek, which claims to power more than two billion connected devices every year, hosted ‘Catch-up with Tech’ in collaboration with handset brand Infinix on August 28 to share insightful and engaging conversations about the new-age smartphones and innovative technologies powering everyday lives.
The meet-up threw the spotlight on the MediaTek Dimensity Auto, Satellite solutions and Generative AI along with an extensive showcase of newly-launched Infinix Zero 30 5G powered by MediaTek Dimensity 8020, Infinix GT 10 Pro powered by MediaTek Dimensity 8050, and Infinix QLED TV powered by MediaTek.
In terms of specs, the Infinix Zero 30 5G is tailored for young storytellers and creators, featuring the first-ever smartphone to deliver 4K 60fps video recording from its 108 MP OIS rear camera and ultra-high resolution 50MP front camera. The Zero 30 series powered by MediaTek Dimensity 8020 is said to be a game changer for the front camera vlogging experience along with being the slimmest curved AMOLED smartphone in the segment with glass and a vegan leather back panel. It also claims to be one of the most premium-looking devices in the segment.
The event witnessed a panel discussion moderated by Anuj Sidharth, Deputy Director Marketing & Corporate Communications, MediaTek and included expert panelists from Infinix, MediaTek and two renowned professional photographers.
“With the fifth edition of Catch-up with Tech, we aim to bring consumers closer to the technology and enable them to make informed buying decisions based on their diverse needs. In collaboration with Infinix, this meet-up is in-line with MediaTek’s vision of technology democratization and making innovative technology accessible to everyone,” said Anku Jain, Managing Director, MediaTek India. “The MediaTek Dimensity 8020 in Infinix Zero 30 5G brings faster displays, brilliant cameras and ultra-fast performance. Further, MediaTek Imagiq technologies enrich the capture experience by combining dedicated AI, imaging processors and accelerators to provide incredible results,” he added.
Anish Kapoor, CEO, Infinix Mobile India, said, “Featuring India’s first 50MP 4K 60 fps video recording, Infinix Zero 30 5G is primed to redefine smartphone imaging capabilities, setting a new standard for the creators and vlogging enthusiasts. Our collaboration with MediaTek has played a pivotal role in shaping our exceptional smartphone portfolio, and the Zero 30 5G stands as evidence of our unwavering commitment to innovation and delivering unmatched experiences to our users. The display and design of the device represent a leap forward in smartphone technology. As Infinix Zero 30 5G hits the shelves, we are positive that our customers will find this new offering as exhilarating as we do, further empowering creators to capture their story like never before.”
Radhakrishnan Chakyat, a photography evangelist, founder and host of Pixel Viilage, said, “Infinix Zero 30 5G smartphone powered by MediaTek Dimensity 8020 chipset has amazing hardware features, an excellent camera, dual-view video mode and is primed for optimal content creation and saves a tremendous amount of editing time.”
Aarzoo Khurana, a wildlife photographer, said, “Over the last few days, I clicked various pictures and recorded a few videos with the newly-launched Infinix Zero 30 5G powered by MediaTek Dimensity 8020, and the experience has been truly inspiring. Infinix’s smartphone’s OIS feature helps content creators click shake-free pictures and the front camera, which is extremely sharp and detailed, enables content creators to click countless selfies.”
