YouTube starts testing ads on Shorts

Google’s chief business officer Philipp Schindler said on Tuesday that the company is testing ads on YouTube Shorts, its short-form video feature. As highlighted by Bloomberg, the company is testing ads on Shorts with products like app install and video action campaigns. 

“While it’s still early days, we’re encouraged by initial advertiser feedback and results,” Schindler said on the earnings call for Alphabet Inc.

First rolled out in 2020, YouTube’s TikTok-like Shorts feature currently has 30 billion daily views, up 4x from the last year. A couple of weeks ago, Google announced the expansion of Shorts to web and tablets.

For the first quarter of 2022, YouTube ads revenue  increased by 14% to $6.87 billion. YouTube’s parent company Alphabet’s revenue for Q1 2022 was $68 billion, up 23% year-over-year, below analyst expectations. 

“There are 2 billion+ logged-in viewers who visit YouTube every single month. And more people are creating content on YouTube than we’ve ever seen before. And the team remains very focused in trying to help creators grow, trying to innovate,” said Schindler.