YouTube continues to dominate the streaming market, with advertising revenue growing by 13% year over year, according to Alphabet, Google’s parent company, in its second-quarter earnings report released on Wednesday. This growth brings YouTube’s total ad revenue to $9.8 billion, up from $8.7 billion in the same period last year.
The company slightly outperformed analyst expectations, which had projected YouTube’s second-quarter ad revenue to reach around $9.6 billion.
For years, YouTube has been working to secure a larger portion of television ad dollars, especially as TV viewership has become a significant part of its audience. A recent Nielsen report found that YouTube held the largest share of TV viewing for three consecutive months, accounting for 12.4% of total time spent watching television.
In response to YouTube’s success, competing streaming services like HBO Max and Amazon Prime Video have intensified their advertising strategies, increasing ad placements to drive growth. Netflix is also emerging as a strong competitor, particularly after announcing plans to double its advertising revenue this year during its recent earnings call. While Netflix has not publicly disclosed its ad revenue figures, an analyst from Madison & Wall estimates it to be around $3 billion.
Alphabet reported strong overall results, with total revenue reaching $96.4 billion in the second quarter, marking a 13% increase compared to the previous year.