KOLKATA: YouTube’s advertising revenue rose dramatically in the first quarter of 2021 , up 49 per cent from the same quarter in the last year. As the parent company Google/Alphabet reported its first quarter earnings, YouTube ad revenue amounting to $6 billion has trumped all expectations.

Google and Alphabet chief financial officer Ruth Porat has credited “exceptional performance in direct response and ongoing strength in brand advertising” for the jump in ad revenue. The direct response business is now a large and fast-growing business for the segment, Google chief business officer Philipp Schindler added.

The platform is also working on shopping capabilities of viewers on the platform. “I think we're still scratching the surface on what's possible really with commercial intent on YouTube,” Schindler said. He emphasised that advertisers are using YouTube to reach audience that they can’t find anywhere else. The video viewing platform is starting to see an advertiser mix of awareness and more action-oriented formats who are driving reach and results across the funnel.

The video giant currently boasts of over two billion monthly logged users and over one billion hours of daily video consumption. Interestingly, its short video platform has also seen exponential growth. “YouTube Shorts continues to gain popularity with over 6.5 billion daily views as of March, up from 3.5 billion at the end of 2020,” Google and Alphabet CEO Sundar Pichai said.

Overall, Alphabet reported $55.3 billion in Q1 revenue, up 34 per cent year-over-year. “Over the last year, people have turned to Google Search and many online services to stay informed, connected and entertained. We’ve continued our focus on delivering trusted services to help people around the world. Our Cloud services are helping businesses, big and small, accelerate their digital transformations," Pichai said in a letter to the shareholders.