Since the internet has entered the world, social media platforms have been on the rise and YouTube is one of the most popular platforms all over the world. In 2024, YouTube had more than 2.70 billion active users along with 80 million active YouTube Premium users all over the world. According to statistics, around 52% of internet users access the platform at least once a month which makes it gather around 113 billion visits each month. A platform this big presents various career opportunities to not only brands and businesses but also to individual content creators. Getting famous on YouTube means the video is getting viral with loads of views. However, with time, the values have changed, so gone are the days when getting 5 million views meant a thing on the platform.
So how are these views counted? The competition is fierce, and it is only getting tougher with time. So knowing the real mystery behind YouTube views will help content creators and YouTubers brighter, and better.
What counts as a YouTube view?
YouTube is always vested in making sure that genuine people are watching the videos they have uploaded on the platform. This is why, to count something as a view on YouTube, certain conditions need to be followed. So let's understand what a view on YouTube is first. These conditions are -
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The user must select the video to watch on purpose.
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At least 30 seconds are spent watching the video.
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If the viewer watches a video for more than 30 seconds, including
the time spent skimming, it will count as a view.
- If the video gets attention for less than 30 seconds, there is a good chance that it will not be counted.
How does YouTube count a view?
Once you know about what is a view on YouTube, it is important to understand what counts as a view on YouTube. On YouTube a view is counted when the following two conditions are met -
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The viewer chose the video with the intent of watching it.
- YouTube’s algorithm has de-spammed the video.
To simplify, if the video was watched by a real person on a single device, YouTube will verify this as a valid view. After that, a certain threshold is considered successful, and it is 300 views. When it reaches 300 views, the YouTube view count temporarily freezes to make sure that no automated bots, but actual people are viewing the video. At this point, the system keeps track of incoming video views along with the initial 300. Once false YouTube video views are discovered by the system, it can eliminate them. After the first screening is completed, the video views counter will return to its original state. However, YouTube's system will continue to monitor for false YouTube view counts on every video.
If you are wondering why the count is 300, then the answer is anything lower than that cannot overwhelm the YouTube homepage. As a result, this will throw off the algorithm that controls the website. In recent years, YouTube has significantly improved its ability to detect fake video views. They seek certain signs to do so, such as -
● Views reloaded
This is an example of a single viewer manipulating and responsible for artificially increasing YouTube video view count by repeatedly refreshing the video as it plays.
● Viruses
If it appears to be malware, the video will be removed from the platform. A malware is defined as a software meant to cause damage to your computer, server, or network.
● Autoplay through a website
When the video is embedded on a website, it will play automatically. However, YouTube will not qualify it as a YouTube video view count. Malware is a computer program that helps in sending spam messages from your server or computer. On the other hand, software is included in YouTube's security system which can detect malware along with spam bots. YouTube's system will remove these on its own, without your involvement to simplify and speed up the screening process.
Why is YouTube strict about what a view is?
YouTube, as a digital platform, is very careful about what is considered a real view. They are very strict about their tally views because many users sought to deceive the site into believing that more people have watched their videos than they have in real life. Users try to inflate the video's popularity all the time by increasing the number of views artificially. This is mainly done to get their content promoted or monetized by the platform. However, with the rules and system getting stronger, instead of incorporating these black hat practices, spend the time finding out and researching how you can increase the video views ethically.
YouTube has developed a mechanism in its system that can identify what is a real YouTube view to reduce the prevalence of view manipulation. This system is very particular about what counts as a real YouTube view. While the system does not simplify or state what those formulas are that are used to determine the difference between a fake and a real view, let's get into some key details.
YouTube has a feature called live-action along with recorded content on the platform. So, the livestream YouTube video views are also included in the overall count. The system keeps track of all views that are related to the channel. The only requirement for a live video and its views to be counted as real views is that it must abide by the community guidelines.
If you are just starting, or a long-time content creator looking
to grow your channel and audience, consider growing the views as this is the
only thing that will get you paid in real life. You can also check with the
Video Promotion Club to get more views instantly to your videos. However, while
recorded videos, both short and long are best suited for advertisements and
payments, live videos are best suited for increasing engagement in the
community. You need to maintain a balance between these two and use other
useful tactics to grow your channel.
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