YouTube ad sales up 12.5% to reach US$8bn in Q3 2023

YouTube’s ad revenue has surged by 12.5% year-over-year to reach US$7.95bn for the third quarter of 2023, bringing on its upward momentum that began in the second quarter (US$7.7bn). 

According to Alphabet's Q3 Earnings call on Tuesday, Ruth Porat, president and chief investment officer, CFO, Alphabet and Google said the increase in YouTube’s advertising revenue was due to brand advertising and direct response.  

The YouTube advertising numbers exclude subscription revenue from YouTube TV, YouTube Premium, YouTube Music, or the newly launched YouTube TV’s NFL Sunday Ticket package.  

Meanwhile, Porat said the “Other Revenues” segment reached US$8.3 bn for Q3 2023, up 21% year-over-year, primarily driven by subscriber growth in YouTube TV, followed by YouTube Music premium.  

“We have heard positive feedback from our partners at NFL about the new features and live stream reliability. This is a clear example of our ability to execute big partnerships with excellence and at scale,” Sundar Pichai, CEO of Alphabet and Google said on the earnings call. 

Porat said, “We expect to generate an attractive return over the life of the deal. We’re continuing to invest in support of this and excited about the additional opportunities that come out of it working with partners to deliver clips and other opportunities.”  

In terms of Alphabet’s total revenue, it has reached US$77 bn for Q3 2023, up 11% year-over-year, and net income of US$19.7 bn, which slightly increased from the same period of last year (US$13.9 bn).

Don't miss: Google podcasts shuts while YouTube axes Premium Lite subscription plan

Most recently, Google said it will be shutting down its Google Podcasts app next year to focus on creating a centralised podcast destination on YouTube Music with plans to make Podcasts on YouTube Music available globally by the end of 2023.

Google will also be increasing investment in the podcast experience on YouTube Music and will aid Google Podcasts users in moving over to Podcasts on YouTube Music, according to the brand in a statement.

In fact, 23% of weekly podcast users in the United States have already said that YouTube is their most frequently used service which is in contrast to 4% for Google Podcasts, the statement explained. As part of the transition, Google Podcasts users will be able to add podcast RSS feeds to their YouTube Music library, including shows not currently hosted by YouTube.

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