YouTube targets TV dollars with NFL deal, bingeable ‘shows’ from creators

YouTube announced a range of initiatives designed to attract more TV ad dollars to its platform at Brandcast, its annual Upfront event for advertisers. Notably, the Google-owned video service is expanding its relationship with the NFL and plans to exclusively stream the NFL’s first Friday game of the 2025-2026 season. It’s also preparing to pilot a new way for creators to reach the audience that watches YouTube on TV through easily organized and bingeable TV shows. The latter was first announced at YouTube’s Made On YouTube event last September, where CEO Neal Mohan explained that creators making a majority of their revenue on TV screens was up more than 30% year-over-year. A new feature being offered to select creators in the pilot program will allow them to organize their content into seasons and episodes — just like a “real” TV show. In addition to new efforts around “shoppable TV” and tools that let advertisers target major cultural moments like awards season or The PGA Champions ... Read full article.