Earlier today, YouTube held its first ever Brandcast, which revealed how the platform continues to reach more Filipino users by engaging in partnerships with Telcos, Media, and Content Creators.
The New Primetime is Personal
Filipino consumers are fond of customizing their viewing experience, watching content that are more related to their personal interests, passions, and current needs. In fact, Filipino viewership on YouTube remains consistent throughout the day, resulting in the disappearance of “Primetime Hours.”
YouTube has seen continuous growth in the country where creators continue to bring new and locally relevant content online. As such, more and more opportunities have surfaced for media, advertisers, and even users who want to be creators and start their own channel.
From 2016 to 2019, the number of creator channels in the country with more than 100,000 subscribers have grown 20 times. Today, there are over 750 channels with more than 100,000 subscribers.
In three years since 2016, the number of media channels with more than one million subscribers have increased 10 times. Now, there are over 20 media channels with more than one million subscribers.
“The Philippines is an important market for YouTube. Over the years, we have seen an immense growth not only in the number of people watching videos but also in creators starting their own channels and brands going digital to engage their consumers. As we are committed to the Philippines, we plan to further grow the YouTube ecosystem by forging more local partnerships and developing creators outside of Metro Manila.”
– Vishal Sarin, Director of YouTube Content Partnerships, Southeast Asia
One of YouTube’s key partners is Smart Communications, the brand that launched the Free YouTube Every Day program which gives consumers an hour of YouTube every day when subscribed to their favorite prepaid promos. This has made it possible for more Filipinos to enjoy the content they love, and in turn caused a 62% increase in service revenues from mobile date for the Telco.
“At Smart, we strive to empower every Filipino through digital innovations that can uplift their lives. Partnering with YouTube enabled us to grow our business and at the same time connect more Pinoys to relevant and useful videos every day, creating meaningful impact to the lives of our customers.”
– Oscar A. Reyes, Senior Vice President and Head of Consumer Market Development at PLDT and Smart
Cebu Pacific, the country’s leading carrier, has also shown effective use of digital media to drive business results. In fact, it saw three times growth in the number of booked flights during its month-long anniversary campaign, thanks to a strategy of using YouTube to engage its target market.
“YouTube plays an important role in our omni-channel strategy. In the recent Super Seat Fest 3.3 Sale campaign, we reached over 20 million Filipinos and Cebu Pacific became the most searched brand during the campaign period. Most of all, consumers who booked flights during the 3.3 campaign grew thrice compared to our last major seat sale.”
– Candice Iyog, Cebu Pacific Vice President for Marketing and Distribution
Broadcast media such as GMA Network, ABS-CBN, and Wish FM are also using YouTube to reach more consumers by placing some of their key entertainment and music content on the platform. In fact, ABS-CBN and GMA are part of the top 50 channels being watched globally. Both have more than 10 million subscribers to, entitling them to receive the Diamond Creator Award. To put it into perspective, there are only 5 broadcast media recipients of this award in SEA, and two are from the Philippines.
Emman has been writing technical and feature articles since 2010. Prior to this, he became one of the instructors at Asia Pacific College in 2008, and eventually landed a job as Business Analyst and Technical Writer at Integrated Open Source Solutions for almost 3 years.
