YouTube CEO Wojcicki shared in a blog post that the platform is planning to expand Shorts to new markets, buoyed by its growth in India Video streaming giant YouTube has been receiving 3.5 billion daily views on its short-video platform YouTube Shorts, which is under beta testing phase in India. Buoyed by the growth of YouTube Shorts, the platform aims to give creators more video editing tools since the number of people creating content on their phones is growing rapidly. "We’re now beta testing YouTube Shorts in India and we’re excited to help the next generation of mobile creators tell their stories by lowering the barriers to entry. So far, videos in our new Shorts player - which helps people around the world watch short videos on YouTube - are receiving an impressive 3.5 billion daily views! We’re looking forward to expanding Shorts to more markets this year,"  YouTube CEO Susan Wojcicki said in a blog post. The YouTube head honcho also said that YouTube will integrate shopping into the video streaming platform's experience. "We also know many users and consumers research products on YouTube before they buy. According to a recent Talk Shoppe study, 70 per cent of people surveyed say they bought from a brand as a result of seeing it on YouTube. We’re currently testing a new beta program with a group of beauty and electronics creators to help people discover and buy the products they see in videos. We’ll have new features coming out this year, so stay tuned for updates." YouTube is working on the Living Room app to improve the YouTube experience on the big screen. "TV was our fastest growing screen in 2020. That’s why we’ve worked to improve the look, feel, and performance of the Living Room app. And we're making it easier for advertisers to reach more consumers where they are watching," she stated. The company is also accelerating its efforts to launch on more living room devices and make voice navigation even better. "There’s a lot more opportunity for us to keep improving the product for creators, advertisers, and users, and you’ll continue to see a healthy investment in this experience." Speaking about the consumption trends on YouTube in 2020, she said, "During the first quarter of last year, we saw a 25 percent increase in watch time around the world. 2020 was YouTube Gaming's biggest year yet, with over 100 billion hours of gaming content watched on YouTube. In the first half of the year, total daily live streams grew by 45 percent." According to Wojcicki, the YouTube economy is incredibly healthy and strong, despite the challenges of 2020 as the number of new channels that joined our YouTube Partner Program (YPP) last year more than doubled over the year before. "Over the last three years, we’ve paid more than $30 billion to creators, artists, and media companies." In the year ahead, YouTube will support creators and artists in three key areas: policy transparency, additional sources of revenue, and supporting the success of all creators. YouTube's Music and Premium subscriptions have been growing quickly, reaching more than 30 million paid members in the third quarter of last year. She noted that creators and artists are finding other new ways to connect with their audiences and diversify their revenue. "Last year, the number of channels making the majority of their revenue from Super Chat, Super Stickers or channel memberships on YouTube tripled. Indian creator Rachana Ranade uses her channel to help people learn more about financial literacy. She enabled memberships last year, and it's now the majority of her YouTube revenue - more than $100,000," she pointed out. Read more news about (internet advertising India, internet advertising, advertising India, digital advertising India, media advertising India)