RTL Touts YouTube Partnership, With ‘Cobra 11’ Driving 26% Rise in Subscriptions and Opening New Revenue Streams

OK PUT YOUR DRINK DOWN FOR THIS ONE BECAUSE APPARENTLY ALL THE OLD-SCHOOL TV EXECUTIVES ARE FURIOUS ABOUT YOUTUBE FINALLY WINNING THE GAME. THEY ARE LOSING THEIR MINDS BECAUSE RTL DEUTSCHLAND JUST ADMITTED THEIR OLD ACTION SHOW COBRA 11 IS MAKING BANK ON YOUTUBE WITH 30 MILLION VIEWS IN A YEAR! WHICH IS WILD BECAUSE THEY UPLOADED OVER 200 EPISODES AND NOW THEY ARE MAKING MONEY OFF AN OLD SHOW THAT HAS BEEN AROUND SINCE 1996. THE CEO STEPHAN SCHMITTER WAS ON STAGE AT MIPCOM CANNES BRAGGING ABOUT IT WITH THE YOUTUBE VP AND APPARENTLY, SUBSCRIPTIONS ARE UP 26 PERCENT. NOW EVERYONE IS TRYING TO COPY THEM LIKE CHANNEL 4 AND THE BBC BECAUSE THEY ARE DESPERATE FOR YOUNGER VIEWERS. ANYWAY I WILL SEND YOU THE LINK TOMORROW.

LISTEN I ONLY READ THIS AN HOUR AGO AND IT IS HONESTLY HILARIOUS. RTL DEUTSCHLAND FINALLY STOPPED FIGHTING YOUTUBE AND STARTED PARTNERING WITH THEM TO MAKE SOME SERIOUS CASH. THEY TOOK COBRA 11, WHICH IS LITERALLY AN ANCIENT SHOW FROM 1996, AND THREW 200 EPISODES ON THE PLATFORM. SUDDENLY THEY HAVE 30 MILLION VIEWS AND A 26 PERCENT JUMP IN SUBSCRIPTIONS, WHICH IS MAKING EVERY OTHER BROADCASTER SWEAT. APPARENTLY, EVERYONE IS STARTING TO REALIZE THAT PEOPLE ARE WATCHING YOUTUBE ON ACTUAL TV SCREENS NOW, SO THEY HAVE NO CHOICE BUT TO PLAY BALL TO GET THOSE AD DOLLARS. IT IS JUST FUNNY TO WATCH THESE GIANT MEDIA COMPANIES SUDDENLY PRETEND THAT YOUTUBE IS THEIR BEST FRIEND AFTER ACTING LIKE IT WAS THE ENEMY FOR YEARS. OK LAST ONE AND THEN WE DANCE.

German broadcaster RTL Deutschland is seeing a 26% rise in subscriptions and new revenue after putting 200 episodes of its long-running series Cobra 11 on YouTube, attracting 30 million views.

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