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YouTube releases its annual Culture & Trends Report with some interesting insights into fandom, generative AI and the death of monoculture.
YouTube released its annual Culture and trend reportand provides an informative overview of some of the changing trends for content creators. Notable stats include: 82% of 18-44 year olds surveyed online have posted video content online in the past year – across all platforms including Instagram Stories, TikTok and Snapchat.
Interestingly, 54% of respondents “rather watch YouTubers break down a major event than the event itself (e.g. Oscars, Grammys)”. This coincides with the apparent decline in viewership at awards shows in recent years, and speaks to the longevity of streaming and other “online coverage” of events such as music festivals.
47% of Gen-Z (users now aged 18-24) have “watched videos made by fans of certain content, artists or public figures” in the last year – demonstrating the importance of user-generated content in fandom in the year 2023 underlines. Couple this with the fact that 82% of users aged 18-44 posted video content online across all platforms in the past year, and it’s becoming increasingly clear how fans value memes and user-generated content related to specific interests.
For example, YouTube states that “casual fans” could have a feed to help them passively consume more content related to their fandom, “from backstories to behind-the-scenes content.” Meanwhile, a “more active fan” could use shorts to create memes or interact with a brand’s campaign by remixing or riffing on its content.
“Rapid technological change in the media and in creativity has created new expectations for viewers and also created opportunities for all of us to engage with the things that are close to our hearts,” it says on YouTube.
Not surprisingly, the YouTube report validates the platform’s ongoing multi-format push: 87% of respondents have “watched at least four content formats offered by YouTube” in the last year, including long and short videos, as well as live streams, podcasts and streaming videos on TV. 67% of Gen Z surveyed say they enjoy it when their favorite creators create content in multiple formats.
“Viewers increasingly expect personalized experiences and are embracing different formats to meet different needs – watching long, short, live and pre-recorded content on mobile and connected TV screens.”
YouTube also welcomes the rise of videos that use generative AI and virtual YouTubers (vTubers), stating that 60% of respondents are “open to watching content from creators that use AI to generate their content,” and 52 % looked at a vTuber there last year. Videos related to or using generative AI tools will have more than 1.7 billion views on YouTube in 2022 as such tools and the topic at large become more mainstream.