YouTube has made so many people famous. This is a video sharing platform by Google that allows people to upload their videos for views which makes them famous and earn them some cash. So if you have an interesting video that you think people will love, YouTube is the best platform to upload your videos for views. But have you wondered how YouTube count views? According to YouTube, a view is a viewer initiated intentional play of a video. When it was first created, the view count would increase whenever a viewer loaded the video to view it.
This was fair enough for anyone who wanted to have uploaded his or her videos. However, this brought in vulnerabilities as anyone could easily increase his or her views artificially by reloading a video over and over. This made it easy to trick the system since the essence of YouTube’s homepage was to displays popularly viewed videos based on the number of views. It also made it easier for any video to appear on the front page, no matter how lame it was.
YouTube would have none of that and they decided to tighten the lead so that only legit YouTube views would count. They did this by adjusting the method used to count views. Nowadays, the reloading still applies when the views are less than 300 as this will not affect the platform. This way, the threshold to misuse the system will have less significance if any since the views are very few.
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The View Tipping Point
The ball game changes when the view count exceeds 300. This means that the method of counting YouTube views changes for 301 and above views. The reason behind this figure is that YouTube believes that views above 300 will affect the quality videos by crowding its homepage artificially. Contrary to everyone’s opinion, freezing this the views at 301 won’t create any glitch. According to YouTube, freezing the count at this point allows employees to manually count the views to verify their legitimacy.
YouTube has discovered all the tricks on how to get more views on YouTube to inflate their views, including using bots that automate computer processes, refreshing videos hundreds of times, or accrediting videos that undeserving. What makes their system credible and reliable is that YouTube employees take their time to establish where the views are coming from.
If they find out that the views come from several similar computers, the video is removed. Therefore, you should not worry, when your video views freeze at 301 as this allows YouTube to verify the views manually to see if the figures are cooked or not. If they are legit, the actual view count will be released and the continuous increasing once again allowing you to monetize your YouTube views.
Views Exceeding 301
As I said, it’s a different ball game when views exceed 301. If you are planning to cheat the system by artificially manipulating or inflating the view count, don’t even bother since YouTube has a new algorithm to detect and eliminate fraudulent views. If you have tried the old refreshing method, I am sure you did not succeed as it no longer works. You also can’t use spambots or malware to cheat your way through the system as the algorithm will easily catch up with you.
YouTube has taken every security measure to ensure that no fraudulent views make it to the front page. These security measures are classified to make it hard for developing bots and malware to corrupt the system. It is hard to tell how YouTube audits views, however, you will know that your views are being audited if you notice fluctuation in the view count which shouldn’t worry you as it means that your views are being validated and if you acquired the views legitimately, there is no course for alarm as you will recover all your view counts. On the other hand, if the views were manipulated or artificially inflated, acquiring the viewed fraudulently, the video will be pulled or the views will be scrapped. Unscrupulous ways on how to get views on YouTube include:
- Using spambots to manipulate the view counts
- Malware virus and buying views from a third party
- Reloaded videos repeatedly
- Setting a video on auto-play ebbing on a website
Breaking Rules, Buying Views
Many companies wish to increase their popularity using YouTube Repeater. They do this by buying views from people to make their videos appear popular. This is used as an advertising strategy to promote their products. As much as it’s a very tempting method, purchasing views are prohibited on YouTube’s policy center page and the consequences can be devastating when YouTube catches up with you. YouTube has the authority to remove the video if it finds dumping evidence that you are buying views to boost your popularity.
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The Harm in Fraudulent Views
Obtaining views fraudulently creates a lot of problems especially in advertising. YouTube makes money from ads and featuring ads before a fraudulent video complicates the relationship between advertisers and YouTube. The value of advertisement decreases especially if placed before an undeserving video. People are mostly attracted by the video, and if the video doesn’t have the quality or interesting features that the viewer is looking for, it devalues the ads. YouTube, the advertiser, and owner of the video, all want to make money.
To make money from clicks and pay per impression, the views need to be legit. The matter worsens when people pay third party websites to increase views as it devalues YouTube’s ads. Brand recognition is increased by views and video creators know this very well, that is why fraudulent views are rampant on YouTube. This has not slowed down YouTube’s growth as its popularity continues to grow every day. The platform provides an ideal environment for individuals and companies to advertise and increase popularity.
Final sentiments
Businesses have realized YouTube’s potential in advertising that is why the number of companies advertising on YouTube has increased tremendously. We hope that the article has shed some light on the curiosity you had on how YouTube counts views. If you want to increase your video’s view count, provide quality content that people are looking for and avoid using fraudulent methods.
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