YouTube takes on Netflix with originals
BEVERLY HILLS, Calif. — Look out Netflix. YouTube, the world’s most popular video network, launches its big bet Wednesday on whether young viewers will pay a monthly subscription to see online stars.
YouTube’s Red subscription service, which offers ad-free usage plus a Spotify-like music service for $9.99 a month, launched in the fall, but the big push for subscriptions begins Wednesday, with three made-for-YouTube movies and a new series starring YouTube’s most popular online star, Felix Kjellberg, better known as PewDiePie.
Kjellberg is best known for online commentary while playing video games. His channel has reaped in over 11 billion views, and his new series has him making "his way through terrifying pranks inspired by his favorite video games," says YouTube.
Despite YouTube’s sizable hold on the audience, with over 1 billion monthly views, Peter Csathy, CEO of Manatt Digital Media says YouTube had no choice but respond to Netflix, Amazon and Hulu with original content.
The services have morphed from places to watch older movies and TV series into presenting award-winning originals, like “House of Cards,” and “Mozart in the Jungle.”
“YouTube is faced with competitors like never before,” says Csathy. “But we’ve always thought of YouTube as free. How many of the hardcore audience will be willing to pay subscription pricing? That’s going to be challenging, giving YouTube’s demographics.”
But Susanne Daniels, YouTube Red's global head of original content, says YouTube’s advantage is that its stars already have a massive relationship with young viewers.
Indeed, in a recent survey of the top most popular performers among teens, 8 of the top 10 were YouTubers.
“We have a unique path that’s different from others,” says Daniels. “We’re taking advantage of the enormous amount of talent on our platform and giving them the ability to do things they haven’t done before.”
Canadian singer Lilly Singh has over 1 billion views to her iiSuperwomanii channel, which feature sketches and songs.
Her “Trip to Unicorn Island,” movie for YouTube Red is a documentary showing her 30-date concert tour.
“That’s something she couldn’t have done on her channel,” says Daniels, a former TV programmer who has run programming at MTV, Lifetime and the OWN channel.
YouTube plans on presenting 15-25 original productions this year, and hopes to double that in 2017, Daniels says.
The movies will only be available to YouTube Red viewers, while a sample episode of PewDiePie’s Scare PewDiePie series will be shown on traditional YouTube for free.
Unlike Netflix and Amazon, YouTube will present new episodes weekly, as opposed to binge viewing.
The young YouTube audience would be more akin to a channel with contemporary stars, as opposed to a channel that appeals to adults with stars like Kevin Spacey, on Netflix, and Amazon’s Jeffrey Tambor, says Matt Kaplan. Kaplan is the president of Awesomeness Films, which is producing the Dance Camp movie for YouTube Red, starring YouTuber Meg DeAngelis, whose channel has over 350 million views.
“The young performers on YouTube are the movie stars to them,” he says. “The kids in that [demographic] want to see them, and are willing to pay. That’s as important as an adult in seeing a blockbuster.”
With Netflix approaching 75 million subscribers, YouTube will need to see 3%-5% of its audience sign up to remain competitive, says Csathy.
“To get to 3% is really tough,” he says. “But if you can only get the programming there and it’s really good, people will start paying.”
Follow USA TODAY tech columnist and #TalkingTech host Jefferson Graham on Twitter, @jeffersongraham.