YouTube has announced its second-highest quarterly sales performance ever, reporting $8.92 billion in revenue for Q3 2024. Alphabet CEO Sundar Pichai attributes this success to growing subscription services, such as YouTube Music, and improved AI-driven video recommendations.
Revenue from YouTube grew 12.1% year-over-year to $8.92 billion, though it marks the second quarter of decelerated growth. In the last four quarters, YouTube’s combined ad and subscription revenue exceeded $50 billion for the first time. Meanwhile, Google’s subscription revenue, including YouTube TV, Premium, Music, and NFL Sunday Ticket, grew by 27.7% year-over-year, reaching $10.66 billion.
Pichai noted that services like YouTube TV, NFL Sunday Ticket, and YouTube Music are driving subscription growth. Although specific breakdowns weren’t provided, it’s reported that YouTube pays $2 billion annually for the NFL Sunday Ticket package, which is already proving beneficial for both YouTube and the NFL. As of September 2023, the NFL reported more Sunday Ticket subscribers on YouTube than it had on DirecTV the previous year.
Alphabet emphasized AI’s impact on subscription growth, with Chief Business Officer Philipp Schindler stating that Alphabet’s Gemini language models now offer “a deeper understanding of video content and viewer preferences,” allowing for more relevant, personalized content recommendations.
Overall, Alphabet’s sales rose 15% year-over-year to $88.3 billion, with Google Services contributing the majority. Following this announcement, Alphabet stock saw a 1.66% increase, closing at $171.14 per share, with a further 5.5% rise in after-hours trading.
YouTube’s Music subscription service reached 100 million subscribers in March 2024, a significant increase from 80 million in 2022. Additionally, Content ID claims rose by 25% year-over-year, with most rights holders opting to monetize their content rather than remove it.