Written by Joe Jackson on May 12, 2022. Posted in General Interest

Channel 4 and Youtube forge new advertising and content partnership

Channel 4 is set to make around 1,000 hours worth of programmes available on YouTube in the UK. Selected programmes include: 8 Out Of 10 Cats, SAS: Who Dares Wins, Nikki Grahame: Who Is She?, Location, Location, Location, and Gemma Collins: Self-Harm and Me. This move will allow Channel 4 to sell its own advertising around the shows. The partnership marks the first deal of its kind across the UK and Europe.

“Innovative strategic partnerships are Channel 4’s speciality, and this new relationship with YouTube is another which will ensure we continue to keep growing our reach with young audiences and build on our unrivalled digital success,” explains Channel 4’s Chief Executive Alex Mahon. "Together with YouTube we have created a powerful consumer channel full of our brilliant Channel 4 content. This will engage even more viewers through the enhanced reach and digital scale of YouTube, combined with the dynamism of the Channel 4 brand.”

SAS: Who Dares Wins will feature in the new Youtube deal

The deal with YouTube reflects a major step for Channel 4’s digital transformation as well as its ongoing strategic partnership with Youtube. Its five-year Future4 strategy is designed to accelerate digital growth, generating new revenue streams by reaching young audiences where they enjoy watching content. The new partnership with YouTube - which is used by 98% of online 18-34-year-olds each month - will make hundreds of hours of full Channel 4 and E4 episodes available to watch across Channel 4’s YouTube network by the end of 2022. Content will start rolling out from May.

“I'm proud to welcome Channel 4's creative, thought-provoking long form content on to the YouTube platform,” explains Ben McOwen Wilson, Managing Director of Youtube UK and Ireland. “As an open platform, YouTube is where UK audiences of all ages and backgrounds come to watch what they want to watch, when they want to watch it. It is fantastic to drive innovative partnerships such as this, to enable leading broadcasters to contribute to the diversity of content on the platform of choice for young viewers."

Other hit shows featured in the new deal are: Unapologetic, Davina McCall’s Language of Love, Kathy Burke: Money Talks, The Dog House, and Devon & Cornwall. As part of a wider syndication strategy, certain shows will be made available to watch on YouTube 30 days after first being broadcast on Channel 4 and E4. In order to directly sell advertising around its Youtube content, Channel 4 will also create a dedicated Youtube team within its commercial arm 4Sales.

Images courtesy of Channel 4