Youtube videos are insanely long now

It seems like the average video is at least 30 minutes now. It's like watching a TV show

My hot take is that removing the 10 minute limit is one of the worst things they ever did. I don't want to see overly "produced" videos, I want the kind of stuff that made it fun to watch in the first place. I guess Shorts/TikTok have tried to replicate that somewhat, but it all seems so phony now with how mainstream videos are. So hell, maybe it was doomed either way.

But yeah, videos are almost always too long, regardless of how actually long they are. People are making 15 minute videos that could've been 6, half hour videos that could've been 12, etc.

bachewychomp posted...

But yeah, videos are almost always too long, regardless of how actually long they are. People are making 15 minute videos that could've been 6, half hour videos that could've been 12, etc.

That's because of how things are monetized. The longer the video, the more money you theoretically make.

Like 10 years ago multiple creators were talking about how they had to stretch videos to hit the 10-minute mark to trigger things.

ParanoidObsessive posted...

That's because of how things are monetized. The longer the video, the more money you theoretically make.

Like 10 years ago multiple creators were talking about how they had to stretch videos to hit the 10-minute mark to trigger things.

It's also why so many fake controversy videos exist on there. Most likely paired up with clickbait titles and thumbnails. Hell even regular youtubers do clickbait.

Most I watch are still 10 minute long but then again I don't mind if they are 30 minute long depending the context.

Game Grumps changed their format from 10-15 minutes videos to 40-60 minute videos a few years ago, and I'm still not crazy about it. It was either the YouTube algorithm or changes to ad revenue agreements that forced the change.

ParanoidObsessive posted...

That's because of how things are monetized. The longer the video, the more money you theoretically make.

Yeah I know, but that doesn't make it suck any less. Maybe monetization at all was a mistake, videos were better when people just made that shit for fun. No wait... without monetization, then even more money from other people's work would just be funneled straight to Google. That's why I always land on the upload length limit. I think it could've worked staying at ten minutes, if not been better. But there's no going back now so YouTube will probably just keep spiraling in a race to the bottom. More and longer videos with somehow less and less substance (hello, podcasting!)

Revelation34 posted...

Hell even regular youtubers do clickbait.

They basically have to. The algorithm is dogshit.

Same reason so many people do sponsored ad reads or push their Patreon these days - ad revenue is in the toilet and you basically have to grind to survive.



bachewychomp posted...

Maybe monetization at all was a mistake, videos were better when people just made that shit for fun.

They really weren't.

Before monetization, most videos were just whatever random shit people threw up for the hell of it, and it was more like watching shitty TikTok 99% of the time. You'd have to sift through a LOT of garbage to maybe get lucky and find something worth watching. Then 5 minutes later you'd have to start the whole search over again.

Monetization is what mainly allowed creatives to work on projects that were more than just throwaway garbage, and start producing consistent content on a regular basis that was actually worth watching (and which helped YouTube become a viable alternative to things like cable TV). It's when YouTube basically went from being a random scrap album to actual performative art.

Nearly every content creator anyone remembers today either started out because they could make money off YouTube, or became more regular content producers because they could make money off YouTube (and potentially quit their normal 9-5 jobs).

The problem is that, since the Adpocalypse, revenue sharing has gotten worse and worse, to the point where now most creators can't survive solely on YouTube revenue. So they're either driven to use alternative means of payment, lean more into Twitch streaming (which has its own drawbacks), or simply give up content creation entirely and go back to get a real job (if they can).

Damn_Underscore posted...

It seems like the average video is at least 30 minutes now. It's like watching a TV show

I won't lie, there are some video game playthroughs I would have watched like a show had cable television jumped on the craze.

In our next episode, can Ellie get through the hunted mode where every Seraphite drops a bomb when they get killed? Find out on the next playthrough, after the streamer goes to drop their kids off and take a nap! (^-^)

ParanoidObsessive posted...

They basically have to. The algorithm is dogshit.

Same reason so many people do sponsored ad reads or push their Patreon these days - ad revenue is in the toilet and you basically have to grind to survive.

Some don't have patreons. I meant minor ones like showing a fake kidnapping in a thumbnail with the title "I stopped a kidnapping" when no kidnapping had actually taken place.

I generally have no problem with the length as long as it's quality content. Whatever streamer/podcast content I watch is pretty much exclusively through highlight clips though.

People like you are why TikTok continues to exist...

faramir77 posted...

Game Grumps changed their format from 10-15 minutes videos to 40-60 minute videos a few years ago, and I'm still not crazy about it. It was either the YouTube algorithm or changes to ad revenue agreements that forced the change.

I love that this happened and wish they were longer. Ten minutes is stupidly short and not enough time to have any meaningful gameplay or banter. Breaking it up ruins the flow of a good video.

Even Youtube Shorts are getting longer, I've seen several Shorts that were over 2 minutes

Damn_Underscore posted...

It seems like the average video is at least 30 minutes now. It's like watching a TV show

And the quality is nowhere near a TV show.
Wake me up when we get Youtube content on par with something like The Pitt. Until then I get to settle with uninteresting background noise AKA slop.
https://gamefaqs.gamespot.com/a/forum/3/3c6a79f0.jpg

Longer the better imo so am very happy with the trend.

Damn_Underscore posted...

Even Youtube Shorts are getting longer, I've seen several Shorts that were over 2 minutes

Yeah Youtube raised the shorts limit to 3 minutes from 1 minute. It's not a short if it's longer than 30 seconds.