This week’s insight challenges you to consider two words: Listening and Watching
We recognize that many people listen to the audio content on YouTube, regardless of the video engagement. We have seen YouTube transform from a video-only service to a video-first platform which consistently delivers audio content via music and music videos. Listening to “music and music videos on YouTube” has always been counted as an audio source in Share of Ear, our syndicated service that measures all types of audio consumption.
According to the Q1 2023 Share of Ear data, listening to music and music videos on YouTube makes up 14% of all daily audio consumption by those age 13+ in the U.S. This does not include listening to YouTube’s streaming service, YouTube Music, which is measured separately in Share of Ear. It also does not include podcasts, which can be consumed on YouTube and often spark listening/watching conversations.
We have seen the television evolve from a video-only “watching” device to an internet-connected, multi-media device that delivers audio content as well. Last fall we wrote in Weekly Insights about the amount of listening done by young people on televisions.
This week’s insight shows us that when Americans consume music and music videos on YouTube, 23% of that listening is done on an internet-connected TV or TV device.
The majority of listening to YouTube music and music videoshappens on a mobile device, but it’s important to acknowledge televisions as audio devices. Televisions can take prominent places in our homes and can now provide on-demand or linear audio experiences, even through video-first platforms such as YouTube.
