By Mallory Mattingly
YouTube is on its way to becoming the “new king of all media,” per The Hollywood Reporter.
In advertising revenue alone, YouTube garnered more than Disney, NBCUniversal, Paramount Skydance and Warner Bros. Discovery combined last year, Business Insider reported, its $40.4 billion exceeding its four competitors’ total sum of $37.8 billion.
The outlet called these numbers a “substantial change” from 2024, where YouTube only pulled $36.1 billion in ad revenue, compared to Disney, Comcast’s NBCU, Paramount and WBD’s $41.8 billion.
Related: 2 Billion People Watch YouTube a Month
For total revenue in 2025, YouTube earned over $60 billion. Because of this, financial research firm MoffettNathanson concluded “that YouTube’s estimated $62 billion in 2025 will have allowed it to pass The Walt Disney Co.’s media business, which generated $60.9 billion last year (excluding Disney’s lucrative experiences division),” according to The Hollywood Reporter.
“Over the next few years, unlike almost any other asset we cover, we strongly believe that YouTube will be a major beneficiary of both the structural tailwinds and headwinds facing technology and media companies,” Michael Nathanson said.
Right now, YouTube is valued at “between $500 billion-$560 billion, far above any traditional media competitors. The closest would be Netflix, which has a market cap of about $409 billion as of writing.”
YouTube’s rise to the top is thanks, in part, to its ability to pay creators. Since 2021, the platform has paid out more than $100 billon to creators, artists and media companies, CNBC said.
“There are two really fundamental things that we do for creators,” YouTube CEO Neal Mohan told The Hollywood Reporter last year. “One is help them build an audience and connect with their fans, regardless of where those fans are in the world; and the second thing we do is we help them build businesses. That’s what that $100 billion represents for me.”
According to the CEO, enabling creators to tell their stories matters most to him.
“I am a technologist, but I also love media and storytelling. I’ve been that way since I can remember, I’m a fan myself, fundamentally,” Mohan said. “Leading YouTube is a privilege where I can actually bring both those pieces together, that human storytelling and creativity and the best of technology, that’s what motivates me every morning.”
According to Nielsen’s The Gauge report for January, YouTube averaged the most monthly views out of all the streaming conglomerates with 12.5%. Netflix followed with 8.8%. In fact, YouTube has lead every month over the last year.
With YouTube’s massive reach and impressive ad revenue, it’s no surprise that the platform is the “new king of all media.”
Read Next: A Look at YouTube 20 Years After Its Launch
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