Filmed podcasts are attracting more and more users and content creators. And Youtube is well positioned to be the new leader in the format.
“Hello everyone and welcome to this new episode of Sip&Gossip.” Sitting in her fluffy white armchair, a microphone placed in front of her, content creator Maghla is used to welcoming guests to her pop-colored decor. For a little over a year, she has hosted “Sip&Gossip”, a monthly video podcast where she enjoys reading unspoken testimonials from subscribers, while drinking tea in the company of her guests.
A real audience success for the video maker with a million subscribers. His podcasts always exceed one million views, and sometimes reach more than 3 million views. So much so that last November, the gaming streamer decided to offer a new show. Called “Flippe&Gossip”, this time it focuses on horror stories.
King of audiences in the United States
And Maghla is far from being an exception. On YouTube, more and more personalities are launching their own video podcast format, directly on their channel. This is for example the case of Squeezie and Freddy Gladieux who have been hosting “Micro Chaussettes” for two months. For an hour, the duo “discusses everything and nothing” with a guest. And the success is there: the first episode with Léon Marchand exceeds 5 million views.
Similar observation for My better self. In her show “InPower”, which lasts between one and two hours, the videographer chats with distinguished guests like Gad Elmaleh or experts to look back on their journey. The episode with Samah Karaki, doctor of neuroscience, exceeded one million views.
“Historically, podcasts were not necessarily on our platform, but they slowly migrated to YouTube,” observes Charles Savreux, Google & Youtube communications manager, at Tech&Co.
As proof, according to a recent EdisonReport study, among all weekly podcast listeners surveyed in the United States, 31% say that Youtube is the service they use the most to listen to podcasts compared to 27% for Spotify and 15 % for Apple Podcasts. Today, listeners are no longer content to simply listen to podcasts. They want to watch them.
“Observe emotions”
Nothing surprising for Charles Savreux. “The auditory experience remains at the heart of the podcast,” he recognizes, but “the image brings a touch of authenticity.”
“With video, Internet users can observe the emotions of the participants, all in a cozy setting. This gives an even more intimate atmosphere which responds to the desire of engaged communities to get to know the guests even better.”
A format that appeals to users… and which appeals to content creators. Going against hyper-produced content and the race for ever more, video podcasts allow creators to alternate and produce simpler formats, but just as premium and engaging. All at a lower cost. To make a video podcast, you don't need multi-million-euro sets or an entire film crew. All you need is a sofa, a camera and a microphone and that's it.
“It’s a conversational format where creators can chat freely, a bit like at home, and take the time to get into substantive topics and therefore create proximity with their subscribers,” analyzes the communications manager from Google and Youtube.
Thus, Youtube intends to encourage videographers to create podcasts directly on its platform. “We saw this trend emerge organically,” Tim Katz, YouTube's vice president of partnerships, told the Wall Street Journal. “And we wanted to invest in this area.”
Tools for creators
In June 2024, the tech giant closed its Google Podcasts application, dedicated only to audio formats, to encourage the emergence of video podcasts. With one objective: to make the experience linear and more fluid, both for creators and listeners. “The idea was to bring together all our content on a single platform,” insists Charles Savreux.
“Videomakers can offer playlists on their main channel or create a secondary channel. The podcast tab also allows users to easily find all video podcasts on YouTube,” he explains.
At the same time, the platform offers a myriad of tools and features which, without being dedicated to podcasts, allow Youtube to attract creators and establish itself in the world of podcasts. Like, for example, the possibility of chaptering videos and editorializing them, doing live broadcasts or viewing the most popular sequences in order to better highlight them on other social networks.
Videographers can thus broadcast their podcast in real time, offer it delayed on their channel and select the best moments to make Shorts”, lists Charles Savreux. A way of occupying media space and therefore, achieving a wider audience.
Increased competition
Youtube's race to become a benchmark in podcasting is well underway, but competitors are never far away.
“If you had told me five years ago that people would want to watch people talk and sit in front of a microphone, I probably would have told you that's not true,” analyzes Daniel Ek, CEO of Spotify, at Wall Street Journal. But today, “it’s all about video.”
On Spotify, the number of users watching podcasts almost doubled in 2024, and nearly two-thirds of listeners say they now prefer podcasts with video.
Thus, the music streaming platform has also adopted the trend by offering its video podcasts hosted by popular content creators. On the program, the podcast “la Table ovale” with Mcfly and Carlito, “Chez Sally” with the influencer Sally or even a collaboration with Lena Situations.
Since September 2022, the fashion videographer has hosted on the streaming platform “Canapé 6 places”. On her pink sofa, the influencer followed by 4.7 million subscribers on Instagram welcomes celebrities and looks back on their life journey. Like the singer Aya Nakamura or Anna Wintour. And the format is a real success. For the second year in a row, the podcast is the most listened to of the year in France on Spotify.
