Need help changing a lightbulb? Wondering exactly what the ending of that movie meant? Trying to learn how to play guitar? What’s the first website you’re going to?
With something like 500 hours of content uploaded to the site every minute, if you’re looking for a video about something, chances are you’ll find it on YouTube.
The platform has undergone countless changes since it launched in 2005 — some good, others less good, but always changing and always culture-defining. Arguably, social media influencers as we know them today were first seen on YouTube.
People playing video games in their bedrooms and vlogging their daily lives soon became internationally renowned celebrities, raking in millions of views, fans, and dollars! Now YouTube boasts some of the biggest figures in the world, making some of the best, most innovative content available.
Its position as the dominant (read: only) video-sharing platform means it has no real competitors. This is a problem and, I think, leads them to make some truly baffling decisions.
How about when they removed the public dislike button? It was a move meant to protect creators, but the change was widely reviled by everyone. You wouldn’t have done it to placate multinational corporations whose soulless corporate drivel was regularly disliked into oblivion, right YouTube? Right?
There’s also the issue of misinformation and the safety of younger users on the platform. With the amount of content being uploaded every day, it’s very difficult to comb through it all and make sure it is not dangerous or toxic. Inappropriate content continues to slip through the net — and if you believe what the business says, then YouTube is doing its best to address it.
Problems acknowledged, there really are no other sites like YouTube. They provide the platform for people from all walks of life to express themselves and share their personalities and talents with the world.
And, without YouTube, the internet would be a far more boring place!
Register now to join the conversation, access exclusive content and be a part of our exclusive brand communities.
