YouTube is launching a new ‘YouTube Spotlight Canada’ channel that will showcase Canada’s top French and English speaking stars and highlight emerging talent across Canada.
Additionally, each month the channel will feature the creators and the videos that Canadians are clicking, watching and sharing the most, as well as themed playlists.
“Canada is the first country to have its own Spotlight channel dedicated solely to local creators,” says Marie Josée Lamothe, Google Canada’s managing director of Quebec, in a press statement.
“Canadians make up one of the world’s most vibrant communities on YouTube — watchtime in Canada has grown 30 percent over last year, and our Canadian YouTubers are exploding internationally. We are so proud of their success and want to do more to share it here at home.”
“Canada is the first country to have its own Spotlight channel dedicated solely to local creators.”
The first edition of YouTube Spotlight Canada will allow Canadians to learn more about their favourite Youtubers and includes highlights from Canada’s various 150 celebrations, videos about Canadian history and a roster of indigenous music artists.
YouTube has also revealed that it plans to launch its ‘Creator on the Rise’ channel in Canada on August 2nd. Creator on the Rise showcases Canadian creators who are rapidly growing on the streaming service.
While YouTube wants to showcase Canadian talent within its borders, it also points out that 90 percent of Canadian viewership comes from outside the country, which is higher than any other platform on the streaming service.
Though that may be the case, YouTube watch-time in Canada is up 30 percent compared to 2016. Canadian channels have also seen their watch-times grow 45 percent, and YouTube experienced a 65 percent in Canadian channels that have more than 100,000 subscribers.
“Canada is home to some of the world’s most creative people and YouTube is empowering this generation of creative Canadians to express themselves to the world,” said Lamothe.
“We are thrilled to shine a spotlight on the diverse Canadian voices creating on our platform.”
Source: YouTube
