YouTube Core Business Might be in Jeopardy Due to 'Youtube Shorts'

Recently, Google revealed that more than 2 billion monthly viewers that are signed in watch YouTube Shorts. The 1.5 billion monthly active users for YouTube Shorts announced in 2022 have been surpassed by this figure. Despite the fact that the high figures offer YouTube's short video feature an advantage over rivals like TikTok and Instagram Reels, they might not be the best news for the site as a whole.

The main, long-form video business of the Google-owned video streaming network may suffer as a result of Shorts, the Financial Times said, citing corporate sources.

Is long video format 'dying'?

Short video platform Shorts is threatening to cannibalize its core business, according to a report. "Recent YouTube strategy meetings have discussed the risk that long-form videos, which bring more revenue to the company, are a 'dying' format," the report added. The YouTube team also claims that "creators make shorter videos. — Because consumers there is no desire and there is no benefit to brands that prefer short content in product placement."

The team reportedly believes that YouTube's short videos were "intended to complement, not compete with, all the other formats that creators use" on the platform. , such as audio and live streams.

YouTube now needs to support short films as it grows in popularity, for example by investing in content creators and encouraging them to produce exclusive content. Meanwhile, the company is still figuring out how to generate more ad revenue from Shorts. The company introduced ads in Shorts late last year.

What about ad revenue growth?

YouTube's ad revenue has fallen three quarters in a row compared to the previous year. However, it showed green shoots in the last quarter. In its second quarter (Q2) 2023 results, Google reported that YouTube generated $7.67 billion in ad revenue. This is 4 percent more than in the same period last year. Overall, Google's quarterly results grew from advertising and cloud services. The company brought in $74.6 billion in the quarter ended in late June, compared to $69.7 billion in the second quarter of 2022.

Youtube adds Shorts links

A new tool that lets producers link their Shorts films to other videos on their channel was also introduced by YouTube. Creators of Shorts may now direct viewers to long-form content, new Shorts, livestreams, and more with this upgrade.

In the past, URLs could be posted to the comments and descriptions of Shorts. However, YouTube is doing away with this feature, claiming a desire to cut down on spam and phishing.

How to use new linking tool?

In the desktop version of YouTube Studio, creators may now add a single "related video" link while creating a Short video. Any other video on the same YouTube channel may be found by following this link. The "related video" feature may be accessed under the Details tab on YouTube Studio's right sidebar. Any Shorts video—old or new—can be altered to include a link.