Many creators wonder whether YouTube shorts count as watch hours. Accumulating 4000 watch hours is no cakewalk. However, one video format that generates the maximum number of watch hours is YouTube shorts. So, there may be confusion among people. Today, we will discuss several details to understand the correlation between YouTube shorts and watch hours.
Do Shorts Count As Watch Hours On YouTube?
The simple answer to this question is NO. Though YouTube shorts are one of the practical video formats, watch hours are not considered for YouTube partner programs. So, if you are a creator starting your YouTube channel, your primary focus should be generating views from long-form videos. Ofcourse, you can see YT shorts to drive viewers to your channel. Here are some other things to know when it comes to YouTube watch time:
- Watch hours must be public to be counted.
- Watch hours should be for the last 12 months.
- Repetition in a YouTube video view counts as additional views and watch hours if the video is watched for 30 seconds.
- YouTube shorts can be monetized at least once you meet the YPP requirement.
YPP: 5 Videos That Won’t Boost The Watch Time
The answer to “Do shorts count towards public watch hours?” is simply Yes. However, other video types don’t contribute to your watch hour increment. Let’s discover:
1. Private & Unlisted YouTube Videos
Private and unlisted videos don’t help in meeting the YPP requirement. You can watch unlisted videos if you have the link. Private video creators make to share it with a limited audience like friends, family, and channel members. Earlier in 2019, private and unlisted videos contributed to watch hours. Subsequently, YouTube decided to keep the public videos to count watch hours only. So, if you want to meet the YPP requirement faster, prioritize public videos over others as a new YouTuber.
2. Deleted YouTube Videos
Yes. As a new creator, you would test every strategy you encounter. One common strategy is following trends. But this trend has no permanent timespan. It can stay up to a week, a month, or end in a day. So, if you delete any video after the end of the trend or because of underperformance, YouTube deducts and doesn’t count the short watch time. For instance, if you have a total of 3000 watch hours and delete a video that includes 500 watch time, your channel remains with 2500 watch hours only.
3. Advertising Campaigns
Promoting video helps creators enhance the video’s performance and increase the engagement rate. However, advertising campaigns on YouTube are not eligible for watch hours because they explicitly refer to the time viewers spend watching your organic content. It includes content from searches, recommendations, or browsing YouTube channels.
4. Unconverted Live Streams
Live streams are longer videos that maximize your watch hours. But unfortunately, live streams that aren’t transferred into VOD videos can’t count as watch hours. Your live stream will generate watch hours, but they won’t be helpful. So, keep your live-stream videos public so your viewers can access them.
5. YouTube Shorts
YT’s short watch hours don’t count for YPP’s requirement of 3000 watch hours. Initially, you have to rely on organic views of long-form videos and start monetizing.
Conclusion
Whether you are the new creator or a regular one, watch hours is a powerhouse to speed up the process of meeting the YPP requirement. However you cannot ignite your watch hour count from anywhere. You can do that only with video-on-demand content. As you know there are three types of long form videos, only public videos are useful if you are wondering do shorts count as watch hours.
Frequently Asked Questions
Q1. How to Get 4,000 Hours of YouTube Watch Time?
Creating compelling titles and thumbnails will help you get 4000 watch hours on YouTube more organically. You can try all the traditional approaches to meet the YPP requirement.
Q2. Does Rewatching A YouTube Video Count As A View Or Watch Hour?
Yes. Rewatching a YouTube video counts as a view and watching hours both, but only if the video is watched for up to 30 seconds by a real person.
Q3. Do YouTube Shorts views count for monetization?
Yes, you can only count views after you reach 10 million short views in the last 90 days.
Q4. Do YouTube Shorts help get subscribers?
Yes. YouTube shorts are the most engaging video format that attracts a wider audience to your YouTube channel.
