The SEM Post

Latest News About SEO, SEM, PPC & Search Engines

You are here: Home / Facebook / Why Facebook Edging Out YouTube for Video Views Isn’t That Impressive

Why Facebook Edging Out YouTube for Video Views Isn’t That Impressive

at PST By

For the first time, Facebook edges out YouTube for video views according to the August comScore data just released.

comscore august videoWhile on the surface, Facebook having more video views than YouTube sounds very impressive, the reality is a lot less so.  The numbers take into account videos viewed on Facebook that autoplayed, something users have been complaining about since they made the change earlier this year.  And many Facebook users have autoplaying ads set to mute, so they might not even be aware a video is playing if their attention is focused elsewhere.  But for those who don’t realize that, it would make it seem that Facebook is the place to be for videos.

There is also the issue that Facebook Pages gives a much greater organic boost to posts that use Facebook videos that the user or company has uploaded over those posts that simply link to a YouTube video.

It also raises the question for potential advertisers.  How much value is an ad that auto-plays before an auto-playing video on Facebook compared to a YouTube video which is clicked through to or clicked on in order to start playing?  And that is something Facebook will need to address to advertisers as well.

However Facebook recently acquired LiveRail, in part to monetize their video views, so the changes Facebook has made to the videos on the platform, such as boosting organically any Facebook videos over YouTube ones as well as auto-play clearly shows that it is paying off for the social media company.

Here is the interview with comScore’s co-founder and chairman emeritus Gian Fulgoni on the findings.

The following two tabs change content below.
My Twitter profileMy Facebook profileMy Google+ profileMy LinkedIn profile

Jennifer Slegg

Founder & Editor at The SEM Post
Jennifer Slegg is a longtime speaker and expert in search engine marketing, working in the industry for almost 20 years. When she isn't sitting at her desk writing and working, she can be found grabbing a latte at her local Starbucks or planning her next trip to Disneyland. She regularly speaks at Pubcon, SMX, State of Search, Brighton SEO and more, and has been presenting at conferences for over a decade.

Sign up for our newsletter