YouTube creator ecosystem contributed Rs. 6,800 Crore to Indian economy in 2020: report

The YouTube video-sharing platform’s ecosystem of creators generated “considerable” economic value and contributed around Rs 6,800 crore to the Indian economy in 2020, according to a report on Thursday.

The report by Oxford Economics, an independent consultancy, assessed the economic, societal and cultural impact of YouTube in India.

The report shows that “YouTube’s growing ecosystem of creators has generated tremendous economic value, contributing Rs 6,800 crore to India’s GDP and supporting 6,83,900 full-time equivalent jobs in India in 2020,” YouTube said. by publishing the results during a virtual briefing.

The Oxford Economics study combines advertising revenue generated by YouTube with other related revenue, such as non-advertising revenue (such as subscriptions and alternative monetization) and off-platform revenue (fan-meetups and sponsorships).

It estimates YouTube’s economic impact based on direct impact (profits and salaries earned by creators and their teams), indirect impact (generated by the spending it drives in the Indian supply chain in the broad sense) and the induced impact (generated by the salary costs of the people employed by the ecosystem of creators).

YouTube said that in addition to revenue generated on the platform, a creator’s presence can help it gain a global fan base and explore multiple revenue streams through brand partnerships, live performances and other avenues.

These revenue streams not only support the jobs and incomes of creative entrepreneurs, but also drive broader activity in supply chains, YouTube said.

Commenting on the report, Ajay Vidyasagar, Regional Director (Asia-Pacific) of YouTube Partnerships, said, “The creator economy in the country has the potential to emerge as a soft power impacting economic growth, job creation and even cultural influence.” India is a big market for digital and social media companies and has seen strong growth thanks to booming smartphone sales and affordable data speeds.

Social media users have made leaps and bounds and the ecosystem of content creators has flourished. That said, major social media platforms have drawn attention in the past to hate speech, misinformation and fake news circulating on their platforms, and there have been persistent calls for greater accountability.

Under IT rules notified last year in the country, large digital platforms (with more than five million users) must publish periodic compliance reports every month, listing details of complaints received and actions taken on them. subject.

According to estimates shared by the government last year, the country has 44.8 crore YouTube users, 53 crore WhatsApp users, 41 crore Facebook users, 21 crore Instagram usage and 1.75 crore on Twitter.