YouTube is no longer skewing young, according to its chief in the UK and Ireland.
Alison Lomax opened today’s Creative Cities Convention (CCC) speaking about two decades of the Google-owned powerhouse social platform, which just celebrated its 20th birthday.
She said YouTube now reaches 90% of all age demographics each month and audiences would be surprised at who is watching what.
“We see less predictable splits across the generational line [these days] so we are seeing young people like longform content and podcasts and older people watching shorts on their TV,” Lomax said. “It’s a place where people go for their passions and to find the communities they love and love watching. It’s happening organically. Everyone’s experiences are different and curated.”
Rewinding to 2005, when YouTube launched with its first ever video, “Me at the Zoo,” Lomax said there have been huge shifts including the “evolution of the creator economy” leading to creatives like the Sidemen, who now have a Netflix show, and Amelia Dimoldenberg taking over the world.
At the same time, YouTube has had to grow into a world of compliance in order to protect audiences and will soon be fully governed by the UK’s Online Safety Act. “We are an open platform and have lots of diverse opinions, but that doesn’t mean anything goes,” said Lomax. “And we haven’t waited for the Online Safety Act. We have robust community guidelines and these policies act as a guardrail for our partners, creators and artists in terms of what they can and can’t do.”
Lomax’s next YouTube star
Gabby Logan. Image: Jean Catuffe via Getty.
Lomax, who has been in post for two years and was this week connected with the soon-to-be-vacant Channel 4 CEO job, revealed the person she would most want to have a YouTube presence.
She said popular sports broadcaster Gabby Logan is “someone I’ve always respected” who is “doing increasingly quite a lot on her own,” and “getting her to front something [on YouTube] whether it’s a podcast or something else would be fantastic.”
Lomax was speaking at the CCC, which this year is taking place in Bradford, West Yorkshire. Her speech was preceded by the opening talk from this year’s CCC organizer Lisa Campbell. Speaking later and tomorrow are BBC Director General Tim Davie, ITV Studios boss Julian Bellamy and All3Media chief Jane Turton.
