YouTube's $1.65 Billion Price Tag Looks Like Peanuts After 15 Years
Google's acquisition of YouTube in 2006 for $1.65 billion is one of the most successful deals in history, transforming a relatively small platform into the main driver of Alphabet's business.
The purchase took place at a time when Google's market cap was only $130 billion, and streaming was still in its early days.
Since then, YouTube has grown exponentially, with ad revenue reaching nearly $21 billion in the first six months of this year. The platform now accounts for 13.8% of viewing hours, outperforming Netflix at 7.9%, according to Nielsen research.
YouTube's dominance in short-form content has been a key factor in its success, with 1.7 billion unique viewers worldwide watching World Cup videos on the platform during this year's tournament.