Recent Release | 21 Oct 2022
A Platform for Australian Opportunity –Assessing the Economic, Societal and Cultural Impact of YouTube in Australia in 2021
Economic Consulting Team
Oxford Economics
Our research into the impact of YouTube in Australia shows that the platform has extended far beyond its origins as entertainment, to become a widely-used tool for a diverse community of users, businesses, and creators.
Oxford Economics worked closely with YouTube in the second quarter of 2022 to develop a rigorous approach to measuring the video platform’s economic, social, and cultural impact across Australia. Our study quantified jobs and GDP outcomes and examined the ripple effects on adjacent industries and individuals’ quality of life. We surveyed 501 creators, 3,834 users, and 516 businesses across the country, with additional qualitative interview input, to glean insights into how the platform is contributing across their day-to-day lives.
The source of YouTube’s economic footprint in Australia is the advertising revenues it generates for creators and media companies, and the advertising-derived royalty payments made to the music industry, as well as off-platform revenues earned by creative entrepreneurs that are stimulated by their YouTube presence. In our modelling framework we also capture the indirect and induced economic impacts of these revenues, that ripple through Australian supply chains and are boosted by the wage expenditure of those employed.
We found that YouTube’s creative ecosystem contributed over A$1.4 billion to Australian GDP and more than 18,000 full-time equivalent jobs in 2021
In the report, we present the results of our economic modelling and wider research, accompanied by additional evidence and case studies from some of Australia’s most notable YouTube stars and creative entrepreneurs, including: Princess Polly, Jazza, Miiesha, Black as Web Series, Miller Wilson, Engineering with Rosie, and Armando Hasudungan,
About the team
Our economic consulting team are world leaders in quantitative economic analysis, working with clients around the globe and across sectors to build models, forecast markets and evaluate interventions using state-of-the art techniques. Lead consultants on this project included:
James Lambert
Director of Economic Consulting, Asia
+65 6850 0125
James Lambert
Director of Economic Consulting, Asia
Singapore
James is the Director of Oxford Economics’ economic consulting services in Asia.
James moved to this role from Oxford Economics’ London office, where he headed up a team dedicated to exploring the economic impact of technology. He delivered high profile studies on the growth of the digital economy, the impact of automation and the implications for the labour market.
Prior to joining Oxford Economics, James spent over six years in the Government Economics Service. He worked in economics teams of the Cabinet Office, the Foreign and Commonwealth Office and the Department for Transport. There, he gained experience in microeconomic analysis and impact assessment as well as international macroeconomics, economic risk analysis and energy security. In the FCO, James spent three years working on economic issues in East and South East Asia. He also previously worked for the International Labour Organization.
Andrew Tessler
Head of Economic Impact Consulting, Australasia
+61 (0) 2 8458 4224
Private: Andrew Tessler
Head of Economic Impact Consulting, Australasia
Sydney
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