The Indian creator base is now over 2 million strong, and YouTube says the platform has over 40,000 channels in India with over 100,000 subscribers
NEW DELHI: YouTube has some data to share, with which the video sharing and social media platform is attempting to portray India's role and the impact of the maker economy on the Indian economy. Citing a new report by research firm Oxford Economics, YouTube says the platform's creative entrepreneurs contributed Rs 6,800 crore to the Indian economy in the year 2020, while supporting 6,83,900 full-time jobs resulting in more . Traction, reach and revenue.
The Indian creator base is now over 2 million strong, and YouTube says there are over 40,000 channels on the platform in India with over 100,000 subscribers – an annual increase of 45%. The number of channels on the platform has grown by 60% year-on-year, generating over ₹100,000 in revenue. The company also states that more than 40% of creators who received payments last year were not even part of the YouTube partner program, called the Shorts Fund, according to their internal data updated as of July 2021.
There has apparently been a positive spin on things for small businesses, which often try to take advantage of the reach of social media to gain visibility. According to the report, YouTube channels helped 92% of surveyed SMBs reach new audiences, while 87% of SMBs who use the platform for advertising believe it helped drive sales. At this point in time, there are seven ways to monetize YouTube channels, including ads, channel subscriptions, and Super Thanks.
Speaking to us at a round table conference, APAC, Regional Director of YouTube Partnerships, Ajay Vidyasagar says, “The maker economy in the country has emerged as a soft-power influencing economic growth, job creation and even cultural impact. I have the potential to emerge."
"This report is the first of its kind to open up and measure the economic, social and cultural impacts of the YouTube ecosystem in India," says Adrian Cooper, CEO, Oxford Economics.
The research firm surveyed 4,032 users based in India as well as 1,020 businesses in seven Indian languages, including Hindi, Bengali, Tamil and Malayalam. Google-owned YouTube, however, has not shared any indicative data for the year 2021.
Oxford Economics uses the term creative entrepreneur for any social media creator (or 'influencer') who earns income directly from their YouTube presence, and has also hired employees who are paid a regular salary. The minimum criterion for the channel is 10,000 subscribers. These usually also include individual producers, media companies and musicians.
A major source of YouTube's economic impact is the revenue that the platform redistributes to its creators, which can include ad sales, payments from eight optional monetization features such as channel subscriptions and Super Chat, and royalty payments to music and media companies, The report says.
Since the bulk of the data collected covers the year 2020, there is also a definite impact on 'work from home' and 'study from home'. Of the users surveyed for the report, 94% of students over the age of 18 said they used YouTube to supplement their personal studies and help with assignments.
Also, 81% of teachers agreed that the platform has its benefits, while 91% of parents of children aged 13-17 say they use the platform to find information on their child's assignments. Huh.