Youtube is huge and is only getting bigger. It is the media platform of the present and future, so it makes sense that many investors are clambering to buy Youtube stock. But is it possible, can you actually buy shares in Youtube and if so, what is the price and the symbol, and what else do you need to know?
Buy Youtube Stock
Right now, you can’t buy Youtube stock, at least not directly. That’s because Youtube is owned by Alphabet, better known as Google (NASDAQ: GOOGL).
So, if you want to buy shares in Youtube then you have to buy Google stock and take everything else that they own along with it. Of course, if Google were to ever sell Youtube, then you would still hold Google stock and not Youtube stock.
Don’t let that deter you though. If you are keen to get involved with Youtube stock because you think it could one day be much bigger than it is now, then you can still benefit from that growth by investing in their parent company.
If you’re not quite convinced, read on to see why Youtube stock is such an exciting prospect.
Youtube Stock Price
In 2017 CNBC ran the numbers and declared that if Youtube stock was on the stock exchange, it would be worth over $75 billion. This is obviously a lot of money, but there is much more to it than that because it puts companies like Twitter (NYSE: TWTR) to shame by being 5 times bigger than Twitter has ever been. It is also higher than many other competing online enterprises, although it’s still quite a lot less than Facebook (NASDAQ: FB), and we can’t imagine that Youtube would be happy trailing so far behind their online media rivals.
The reason Youtube is so successful is because they have found a way to attract members and to keep them there, while also generating money from them. This is something that Twitter wasn’t able to do, something that Vine failed at and something that has stung many online businesses.
Youtube, however, has advertisers right where they want them. They have found a way of connecting the service with their existing Adsense and Adword network to offer advertisers new avenues through which they can show ads, while giving the Youtubers a way to earn a little cash on the side.
Every ad that you see at the start of a video, every sponsored thumbnail and every banner ad earns money for Youtube and, by definition, Google. What’s more, they offer premium sponsored packages to advertisers who pay a lot of money to get their message in prominent places, lining Google’s pocket with millions in revenue every single day.
Google’s History with Youtube
Youtube was created by three former employees of PayPal. It was first launched back in 2005, and just 18 months later it was acquired by Google for $1.65 billion. This was a vast sum of money at the time and it still is, of course. But as mentioned above, its current worth could be in excess of $75 billion, which makes this look like a steal.
Google clearly thought they were on to something good and judging by the immediate success of this platform, they were right. Without their money and experience behind it Youtube might not be as big as it is now, and that, along with the fact that they still walked away as multi-millionaires for their part in its creation means that the founders of Youtube won’t be too disappointed with themselves.
Youtube Subscription Models
One of the things that very few popular websites have been able to do is get away with offering a paid subscription service. As soon as it was rumored that Twitter would be starting such a service, they received a deluge of hate, even though those claims seemed to be unsubstantiated. The same goes for similar claims about Facebook, which caused a lot of hate to be directed at the founders of the social media platform, even though those claims were a hoax.
Youtube were able to succeed in this venture through a platform known as Youtube Red. This offers ad-free content and it generates considerably more money per user than ads do. Of course, the vast majority of users have not signed up to the service, but there is still time and there are still more big money making schemes on the horizon. Don’t forget, Youtube is only 12 years old and it has only been in Google’s hands for 11 years.
How Big is Youtube?
To give you an idea of just how huge Youtube is, it is currently ranked as number 2 by Alexa, a website ranking program owned by Amazon (NASDAQ: AMZN). There are more than 400 hours of content uploaded every minute and as soon as they decide to compete with the likes of Netflix (NASDAQ: NFLX) and Hulu by syndicating TV shows and films, it will already have a huge viewer base that even the biggest networks in the world would be envious of.
As it happens, this is something that they already have planned and indeed something that is already underway. But then again, who isn’t trying to make original programming these days? It seems to be the “in” thing, and something that even retail stores are trying to get involved with.
Youtube Stock Market
Google currently trades on the NASDAQ stock exchange in the United States. If you want to invest in Youtube by buying shares in their parent company then lookout for the stock symbol GOOGL on this exchange. Google is one of the biggest companies on this exchange and indeed in the United States.
Their revenue is over $90 billion, which is more than the GDP of many small companies and puts them up with with the like of Apple (NASDAQ: AAPL) and Microsoft (NASDAQ: MSFT) as one of the true multinational giants of the modern age.
Youtube Stock Price Today
To see the current Youtube stock price, or rather a price from their parent company, just take a peek at the stock ticker below. This is provided by a third-party, but they are always on the ball and providing the stock exchanges are open at the time you are reading this then you should get an up to date price. Of course, as mentioned several times, this is not technically the Youtube stock price, but as their success helps Alphabet succeed, it’s still worth investing if you are excited about the future of this video sharing website.