YouTube Shorts has introduced a change that brings its analytics closer to competitors TikTok and Instagram. The video platform will abolish the minimum playback time requirement that previously existed for a user to count a clip as a “view”.
Starting March 31, a “view” will be added every time a YouTube short is played or repeated. This will likely mean that creators will see more views after the change takes place. YouTube will continue to track “engaged views,” which measure the number of times a clip has been played “for a certain number of seconds.” YouTube has explained that this change will not affect creators’ earnings or their eligibility for the YouTube Partner Program; both will continue to be evaluated by “engaged views.”
Both Instagram and TikTok define a “view” as the number of times a video starts playing, although these platforms also offer metrics to track the time spent watching content. Given that YouTube Shorts, Instagram, and TikTok claim over a billion monthly users, it makes sense that they count views the same way so that creators can better gauge how many people they are reaching through these services.
