Underperforming YouTube Red Has Big Potential, nScreenMedia Analyst Says

Google's YouTube Red subscription VOD service hasn't been a success since its 2015 launch, but has big potential, nScreenMedia's Lloyd Dixon blogged Thursday. Its estimated 1.5 million subscribers would seem like a success, but that's less than 0.1 percent of YouTube's total monthly user base, and on the iTunes app store it ranks far below Netflix and Hulu, he said. Red being advertising-free is of limited appeal since ad-blocking software is widely used, and its original content -- while perhaps enticing to younger demographics -- is limited, said the analyst: Subscription VOD growth is slowing in the U.S., which could limit YouTube Red growth. But he said the huge YouTube user base is a big opportunity. Google didn't comment Friday.