Being the most subscribed YouTube channel will always be a prestigious title to have, a title that PewDiePie, a Swedish comedian and video game commentator, has enjoyed for the last 5 years, being crowned the 'King of YouTube'. However, in recent months the number one spot has been threatened by T Series, instigating a worldwide campaign to keep PewDiePie, and what he represents, at the top.
But what is T Series?
T Series is India’s largest music label and movie studio, using their YouTube channel to upload music videos and film trailers since 2010. Their recent explosive growth in subscribers has coincided with the growth of internet users in India, which is currently around 460 million according to Statista, tapping into the second most populated market in the world. It is to no surprise that they have been collecting on average 150,000 subscribers per day, but the channel's large number of subscribers has been questioned by conspiracists online and even PewDiePie himself.
In a recent video "TSERIES EXPOSED", PewDiePie advances the popular but unverified theory of ‘auto-subs’ being the reason for T Series’ rapid growth. Instead of organic audience choice, it is suggested that every new internet user in India is being automatically subscribed to them due to the very small viewings numbers on their videos in proportion to their 70million+ subscriber count. Only reaching an average of 500k views on a video implies a very small active following. Regardless of these allegations, T Series about to overtake PewDiePie (this live stream is documenting the real count of subscribers on both channels) is a direct representation of the current increased commercialised state of YouTube. Instead of an independent sole creator at the top, it will be a music label; contradicting the 'broadcast yourself’ message that makes YouTube unique to other corporations.
But! The YouTube community is fighting back!
On the 5th of October, PewDiePie uploaded a very popular form of rap on the platform called a ‘diss track’ with the purpose of comedically attacking T Series. The track, 'Bitch Lasagne' (video below), has reached over 34 million views, triggering a viral campaign known as 'Subscribe to PewDiePie'.
Fans all over the world have since gone into overdrive to keep him at the top spot for as long as possible, many creating grassroots campaigns in their local areas to help the effort. The most high-profile being Mr. Beast, who bought billboards in his city, went on radio stations, bought bathroom adds and much more, encouraging people to subscribe to him.
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| Screenshot from Mr. Beast's video showing one of his billboards. This mass effort not just from the community in turn, reflects what is at the heart of this feud; saving YouTube. The coming together of millions of fans is spreading an important message: to maintain an independent creator as the ‘face’ of this platform and to ultimately stay authentic to the self-made community that is the foundation of YouTube. In fact, if you look at the top ten most subscribed channels, the majority are not sole creators anymore. |
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| Top 10 most subscribed channels as of 21/11/18 via Social Blade Bar PewDiePie, the remaining channels are either collections of playlists under a category, for example, YouTube Music (with all the VEVO channels) and YouTube Gaming, or large corporations such as WWE. Canal KondZila similarly to T Series, is a Brazilian music production channel showcasing interviews with Brazilian talent and music videos. Music specifically dominates the top ten and the rest of YouTube with Justin Bieber's channel and many other huge pop stars like Taylor Swift and Katy Perry who both have 31 million subscribers each. YouTube mimics the MTV phenomenon we saw in the 80's with the music industry exploiting the mass market YouTube can reach effortlessly, becoming more of a distribution funnel for established brands than a platform for original creativity. PewDiePie being the only sole creator in the top ten, demonstrates the corporate shift this media power has increasingly gravitated towards. It is predicted by Social Blade that on December 2nd 2018, T series will move ahead with a lead of 72.78 million. What this marks for most, is an end of an era for YouTube, where independent creators will simply not exist in the form we have known since the beginning of the platform. |
