Netflix Boss Eyes YouTube Billionaires
YouTube’s Rise Sparks Debate: Netflix CEO Courts MrBeast
YouTube’s dominance in teh streaming landscape is intensifying, prompting reactions from industry leaders. The google-owned platform accounted for nearly 12% of total television consumption in the U.S. in February 2025, surpassing streaming giants like Netflix and Prime Video, according to “The Gauge.”
YouTube Outpaces Streaming Rivals
According to “The Gauge,” a monthly report analyzing trends in U.S. television and streaming, YouTube was the only streaming platform to achieve double-digit percentage viewership in the past year.Netflix followed with 8.2%, while Disney+ trailed at 4.8%.
“The Gauge” analyzes current trends in U.S. TV and streaming, comparing viewership between conventional TV and streaming services.
Photo: 2025 The Nielsen Company (US), LLC
YouTube has also seen success with Shorts, its short-form video format directly competing with TikTok.
In February 2025, a YouTube Short by MrBeast titled “Would You Fly To Paris For A Baguette?” garnered 1.4 billion views.
Netflix is a global streaming service offering movies,series,and documentaries,headquartered in los Gatos,California.
Photo: ROBYN BECK/AFP
Netflix CEO Weighs In
As YouTube’s influence grows, Netflix CEO Ted Sarandos has voiced concerns, particularly regarding the platform’s appeal to “professional” content creators like MrBeast.
Sarandos believes Netflix offers a more lucrative chance for creators, stating, “MrBeast would earn more with us.”
Unlike Netflix, YouTube does not offer upfront payments to creators. According to a Bloomberg report, MrBeast reportedly lost around $80 million on his YouTube channel in 2024.
Jimmy Donaldson, known as MrBeast, has 383 million followers on YouTube. He is pictured with his fiancee, Thea Booysen, at the Breakthrough Prize Ceremony in Santa Monica, California.
Photo: FilmMagic
The Netflix CEO also argued that Netflix provides a better monetization strategy for networks and studios, emphasizing a difference in content quality between the platforms. He suggested YouTube is suitable for creative experimentation, while Netflix focuses on higher-quality productions.
A key difference lies in Netflix’s subscription model versus youtube’s standard free access.
YouTube’s Potential to Surpass Disney
In 2024, YouTube generated over $36 billion in advertising revenue, establishing itself as a major player in online advertising.This figure excludes revenue from YouTube Premium and other sources.
YouTube Premium offers ad-free video streaming, offline access, and access to YouTube Music. Subscriptions are available starting at €7.49 per month in Germany.
Photo: SOPA Images/LightRocket via Getty Images
Wall Street analysts predict that YouTube could surpass Disney’s total revenue by the end of 2025. Disney’s total revenue in 2024 was $91.36 billion. This potential growth is attributed to YouTube’s three primary revenue streams: YouTube Premium, Music, and TV.