The real reason YouTubers are quitting...

We're only a couple of weeks into 2024 and already a slew of prominent KZbinrs like Tom Scott, Matt Pat and Hannah Witton have announced they're quitting KZbin or significantly stepping back.
With help from the famous Scroll Deep 'wheel of retirement', Benedict looks into the real reason why there is suddenly a mass exodus from the platform.
#MattPat #TomScott #KZbin
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Welcome to Scroll Deep, the show that keeps up with all the latest goings on so you don't have to, because who has time to keep up with all this internet? Me, apparently. Formerly KZbinr News (RIP).
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[@selmalarsson8920]

My favourite youtuber, youtuber news, quit KZbin, it was really sad. Luckily I found this channel to fill that void

[@IgotLuckee]

Luckily we have these new scroll deep fellas to fill the gap

[@rando58]

what about the podcast?

[@vivisect_victor]

@@rando58i miss the podcast every day

[@Grace-er9ep]

Sometimes I can still hear his voice

[@h3fan725]

KZbinr news (Benjamin Townsend) dident quit he changed his channel name to scroll deep 😊

[@DrBeauHightower]

KZbin doesn't show our videos to our subscribers. Most of us don't make enough money compared to tge production costs anymore. Some are wealthy enough to actually retire. Some of us have to go back to regular jobs. We always knew that this would happen but it's sad that it is finally here

[@thewanderingtraveler2290]

Not to mention they shadow ban you for the basic copyright claim and supporting channels that don’t have any copyright to the clip in question

[@Grace-er9ep]

You can really tell that graphic design is their passion here at Scroll Deep

[@cowdudefan1236]

WHO CARES ABOUT MATPAT LEAVING.🤣🤣 MY VIDEOS ARE MUCH BETTER.😁 IM GLAD HES NOT HERE😂😂...

[@Bellafroebel]

I agree it’s so frustrating that 1) this channel doesn’t get the views it deserves and 2) my recommended feed often doesn’t show me the videos from this channel I have to get them from the notifications drop down, even though I watch pretty much every video from this channel. It’s annoying, it’s weird, I hope they change their priorities

[@cowdudefan1236]

WHO CARES ABOUT MATPAT LEAVING.🤣🤣 MY VIDEOS ARE MUCH BETTER.😁 IM GLAD HES NOT HERE😂😂...

[@Spitfirethedragon]

KZbin is actually killing themselves with all these changes. You get recommendations to videos you do not want, and videos that you are interested in are not showing up.

[@ConejitoPequenito]

And the search function barely works because you get completely unrelated stuff

[@movietv20249]

And also, bot accounts harassing and false reporting other users.

[@movietv20249]

@@ConejitoPequenito Bot accounts harassing other users as well as false reports to them.

[@weirdbuginthenighttime]

Subscribed before the rebrand and had some criticisms, but this new format is exactly what I wanted from this channel. Informative, quick uploads on relevant topics, focused and funny analysis without getting too into the weeds or requiring a ton of background knowledge, and Benedict is a great presenter as always. Its great! Great job guys!

[@Celine8948]

I've also noticed that within the last couple of weeks, KZbin channels have been terminated left, right, front, and center without warning or strikes to content creators. I feel terrible for those channels. They're left in the dark and when you try to appeal, it automatically comes back as a rejected appeal. Contacting them on X(Twitter) is also a waste of time, and they eventually come back with the same response. I also think a complete ban from KZbin(not allowing creators to make another channel) is also a harsh sentence. Sometimes people make mistakes and you can only learn from them. To ban them from ever creating another channel is ridiculous.

[@bitemyshite]

welcome to the future we built

[@sarahjane5902]

Everyone leaving is crazy, but on the minor flip side, 2023 saw the return if two iconic YT duos (Ian and Anthony buying back Smosh, and DanandPhilgames returning) so thats kinda neat?

[@InVisible5D-kj5pe]

KZbin is going down faster than we think.

[@AltoonaYourPiano]

I noticed the ones who have been quitting during the late 2023/early 2024 mass exodus were ones who stuck to a strict uploaded schedule, made videos in a very specific niche, and found they were putting tons of effort into their content and getting less views, while also no longer making what they really wanted to make. It's understandable how that leads to burnout. The smaller ones who make what they want to make, post whenever, put the effort in they want to, continue posting for years and years even if they never break into the mid-sized range, and a lot of it is that it still remains fun for them. There's another reason so many have been leaving, one that isn't talked often about, it's that we make friends on here but those friendships often have a short shelf life since KZbinrs often leave the site behind entirely when they stop making content. You reminisce about your old friends and the fact that nobody's around anymore from when you started really gets to you sometimes. The longer you've been on here, the more friends on here you've seen come and go.

[@ThoughtfulAl]

This is the first time I watched you, it's quite nice and easy to digest how your report on the current exodus, instead of delving into the heavy emotions that have been displayed by other creators reporting about it. I think it's a subject that needs to be covered and maybe it can become a niche for the next little while. I'm very new but already trying to figure out how to avoid the treadmill.

[@Anne_Onymous]

ThemTube keeps chasing creators and users away almost like they're doing it on purpose.

[@Dhemize]

Really wish I found this channel years ago. Big fan of the editing style and jokes

[@camillastacey4674]

I'm always amazed how low the viewer count is on these.

[@JonLeung1]

As a small creator (only 1,673 subscribers after doing this for seven years), it's very discouraging that despite the increasing quality of my content, I am still not monetized, and burning myself out. These big creators show that it's hard to keep doing this sustainably, so I wonder how much longer I should even try.

[@sammiller6631]

You only have 142 videos after seven years? The big creators are big because they were able to feed the algorithm every week and engage with viewers regularly.

[@JonLeung1]

@@sammiller6631I have a full time job and other responsibilities so sometimes it can take a few weeks or a month to make a video.

[@matthewbarabas3052]

i suggest quitting entirely, because you arent making it big here.

[@sammiller6631]

@@matthewbarabas3052 No one likes a quitter.

[@Viyde]

Not to be rude. But its probably the thumbnails.

[@Shark30006]

I’m not going to quit KZbin because I started my own KZbin channel last summer so I’m going to be the best KZbinr

[@BreeAngel143]

I'm here on KZbin for the medium-short form content (5-10min) bc I'm a young millennial (some may say a zillenial) and I don't use the other short form video apps. Please please please don't stop uploading your content here for me!!!

[@cory6192]

So the need for youtube videos to be 20-30 min. at least comes from where? Is it because YT wants to plop ads in ever X minutes, and longer videos allow for more ads? Do people even sit through a video longer than 5 minutes even?

[@livl5168]

you’re one of my fave accounts ive been watching you on here and snap for years. love your tiktok lives and your interviews too, keep it up 😁

[@mwmheps]

Love your videos! But interesting I did find you through the KZbin rewind one, that was how I found you. I like long videos but it’s nice to have a variety of content - if I have 10-15 min free I often want to watch something and I don’t want to have to choose between lots of shorts or half a video - I often find myself scrolling my watch later playlist like ‘don’t have time for this one now, don’t have time for that one now…’

[@ryanrockers]

I hadn't heard of a lot of those people.

[@stephmichaud9162]

honestly i love the shorter videos, sometimes i have just 5 minutes before my train or a quick break here and there and its nice to be able to watch a whole piece of content in that time - love your stuff scroll deep!!

[@MaraJadeSkky]

Missed you and your humor so much, Benedict!

[@gloriasilveira5332]

I suspect a lot of it is everyone either got big or got a huge boost during the pandemic, and now they're cashing out. The other issue is that KZbin as a platform has now matured enough to where all the filmmaker types saturate everything. Back when KZbin was just regular people and their friends making videos, it was really easy to stand out and get views. Now if you want to get almost any views at all, much less get big, you have to basically hire a whole TV crew (ie writer, editor, thumbnail maker, camera/audio/video guy, plus you the "star"). And most people don't have the resources to do that, so new KZbinrs have it really hard trying to "break in".

[@jackbynum]

I think there's also an issue with viewership on content after the initial release. Trad media like Movies, Tv and Books are IP, Property that continues to be rented out by various distributors. But for YT, no video has been able to find the longevity that a traditional film has, where it's getting continued viewership years after the initial release. Thereby, not being a sustainable investment of time for creators.

[@Grace-er9ep]

Idk bro I have watched and rewatched my emotional support Let's Plays several times. My experience is not the rule though, I think I'm in the minority as a lover of long form user generated content

[@jackbynum]

@@Grace-er9ep it’s interesting you say that because like, I’ve watched that Colin and Samir minidoc they did about the opening of Beast burger numerous times. I think there’s a need in for a deeper story inside the content that draws you back multiple times over a longer time span.

[@mrhoneystinger3676]

Tiktok monetization might give KZbin a run. Humbly said I recently got monetized on TT, and within 4 days made $12 from 4 videos that were eligible. Granted the dollar amount is pretty pathetic, yet how much work goes into making 12 bucks from youtube? Dunno, just my thoughts

[@TetraDax]

Well that RWJ-transition gave me a burst of nostalgia I neither asked for nor know how to handle

[@OliveDasi]

What's so bizarre about this is that it's counterintuitive with the short attention span culture that has really popped up with video content and TikTok recently. It should be more logical that shorter videos would be more successful. However it's oddly the other way around.

[@liamanderson4992]

I suggest the real reason KZbinrs are quitting is v simple. Entry barriers are low. If you can afford the kit, you can make & publish videos, so every man and his dog are doing it. Competition is high and it's v difficult to stand out from the crowd. The rewards in return for the effort expended are low. The real reason KZbinrs are quitting is because they do a lot of work but don't make much money.

[@SeanNelsonPhoto]

this is what I think too. Everything online is oversaturated. IG, TikTok, KZbin... So they are struggling to find an algorithm that keeps everyone happy. pretty impossible.

[@SaadonAksah]

Thabks for the insight 👍

[@cos-ibeuchechukwu9398]

Oh. This video is at 337k views at tiktok... Why views so low here ?

[@siatelecomsltdLondon]

There are so many people putting out these types of videos. I take it this is the new trend...😮

[@ElementalWhispers]

Joel Haver isn't leaving or going on a long break. He's making one feature-length movie a month on KZbin instead of multiple short skits. He's just changing the format of his channel.

[@betsyrabbit42]

After watching this on tiktok I came here to say- I watched the youtube rewind breakdown video on here but I don’t watch videos like this on here cause I already watched it on tiktok lol

[@CoalitionGaming]

Us smaller youtubers that have been at it consistently for nearly the last 10 years are seemingly doomed to never succeed

[@staypazutive]

Not at all! KZbin is currently pushing small creators on recommendation! My reach has increased a lot since I started to post consistently 2 weeks ago and some KZbinrs I know blew up. But you have to make content that is liked by the algorithm and what your audience is looking for

[@CoalitionGaming]

@@staypazutive I saw a little bit of that push as well. I was not impressed lol.

[@staypazutive]

keep working on it! It's also about timing! I know friends who are currenly at 900K subscribers and they wouldn't be there if they gave up. @@CoalitionGaming

[@staypazutive]

people can give up if they made quality impressive content for 10 years and didn't blow up and tbh I didn't see channels like that yet@@CoalitionGaming , some people say they make top quality content but when I go to their channels, there is still a lot to improve....so people are only doomed if they are not willing to make the best content ever, which means they need to improve with every video, not just camera quality but also how they talk/in front a camera and their storytelling. I also said new channels are doomed until I saw my friends getting 900K subscribers. They just stopped complaining and kept working on it

[@ironmanduck]

Nice video enjoyed it. I tend to mirror whatever I do everywhere as long as I'm having fun and enjoying myself. I'll continue to do it. I can understand why if it's no longer fun. Why People quit.

[@asabatonlessarmour4372]

To be fair to Tom he technically announced sometime last year already that he would be taking a step back. He made it a point that there were would be "X" amount of videos to go until he retired and you made "X" amount of videos.

[@thefaeriechild4147]

The ray William Johnson transition sound opened a part in my brain that had been ignored for years

[@HPBgirl]

I genuinely prefer 5-10 minute videos over everything else, but it's been harder and harder to find quality videos of that duration

[@abbyjmello]

Anyone remember that channel with the rat on it? Man miss that one.

[@clashkingking6193]

You can think of KZbin being one huge game and all these og creators who have kinda played KZbin have finished the game

[@timtam2400]

I'm a pretty small KZbinr (currently 2,208 subscribers since making my new channel in 2013), and I mostly make videos for fun. I've never applied for the Partner Programme to monetize my content, even though I have thought about it. But I've heard so many negative things about KZbin over the years. It is unfortunate so many big names are leaving or stepping down. But it's understandable why with burnout and unsustainability.

[@AIForHumansShow]

New sub here and I enjoyed it. I will watch more lol.

[@thesequelvintage]

The middle class in every industry is getting squeezed out. It's by design.

[@showtale8325]

Honestly...never heard of any of these people

[@lizard4480]

I really enjoy your videos!

[@heathercontreras1586]

I usually leave videos if they're longer than 10 minutes. If the video is history oriented then I stay, but ain't nobody got time for that. I love your videos.

[@sammiller6631]

Plenty of people have time for hour long videos. Perun gets over a quarter million viewers every week for a unscripted hour long Power Point talks on defense economics. No fancy graphics, just Power Point slides.

[@PogChoke]

almost every video is longer than 10 minutes.... other than shorts and skits, but.. who watches shorts

[@sammiller6631]

@@PogChoke Tens of millions of people watch shorts.

[@heathercontreras1586]

@@sammiller6631 I suppose I could've been more elaborate. I definitely watch videos longer than 10 minutes. Cooking videos to be more specific.

[@PogChoke]

@@sammiller6631 yeah, thats the problem

[@natey_TV]

I'm gonna have to pick up where all these KZbinrs are leaving off :-)

[@Brilchan]

Thanks for letting me know about hanah wantton

[@Grace-er9ep]

If you make 20 minute videos I promise I will watch them. Please tell rat wife I miss her

[@owenclayton5696]

There will be upheaval this year. Do not trust any politician - only place your faith in THE LORD.

[@tactichloe]

Lord tachanka, right?

[@epiccg6872]

please talk about and research what is happening with the youngest generation in the US and help come up with solutions (i guess?)

[@soulpunker3870]

there is also jojo cat who does dnd stuff who is taking an indefinite hiatus as well because the amount of harassment they have received

[@TheScottTubes]

Scroll deep!

[@picassocube3521]

Why all of them, at the same time? There's more to this, those people didn't start KZbin at the same year, but they're quitting at the similar time!

[@morten1]

ALL the youtubers? More like 0.000000000001%

[@ianmisner]

VICTORY BY ATTRITION, BENEDICT!

[@TheKingRuffy]

Get a like and a comment. Let's push the algorythm

[@Yutappy99]

Why are there so many people creating videos about other people quitting KZbin?

[@stevej9740]

Thanks for the laugh. Maybe doing a monthly polished longer video could work. Does that pay the bills ?

[@clashkingking6193]

Whilst there are some that have left us. The new generation (however cursed they might be) will take their spaces

[@dyskelia]

It’s actually annoying to see hour long videos on minute topics on youtube. Sometimes I will be kind of interested but not click on the video because it’s too long.

[@taco1010]

Skip to 3 minutes to get to the information

[@noam65]

Not so Quiet Quiting hits KZbin.

[@RAM_845]

Content creators should consider ALT-TECH. KZbin prefers to look after MASSIVE channels like PewdiePie and Sniperwolf....I HATE them A.I channels. It's voice is annoying.

[@h3fan725]

Papa bless

[@relentlessmadman]

why are viewer leaving youtube! don't know any of these people and I am not interested in trivial bs!

[@marineman54]

So there is no point in making a channel now?

[@ssheav5773]

MatPat**

[@thomasferranti5310]

YouChube? YouChoobers? Why? Chom Scott? Chen years? Plachform? Sabachical? Chwenty chwenty four? Creachors? Achounts? Chext expert? Chee-Vee? 😂 T-t-t-TOOB????

[@SootyPhoenix]

Just tell them to quit quitting, duh.

[@iscreamfitness]

KZbin went woke, and censor ship

[@felinefurkin4275]

I’m glad for shorter videos and Aidan does need sleep, it’s a sadly-underrated essential under capitalism. I know it’s jokes, a bit, but there’s a point where the body says no, and you want to stop far before that.

[@buggerlugz6753]

If only Mr Beast would leave eh....

[@Tocinos]

KZbinrs take their breaks in January since it's the time with lowest CPM ad rates. Notice how they turn it up to 100% in November and December, then fall off in January.

[@casmadison9092]

KZbin gang!

[@kevstwistedhumor9468]

They are rich as fxxk! lol

[@Liofigsguitar]

🎻

[@fox_22boy31]

W video

[@MK-ps2jp]

Get woke go broke.

[@dotagedrain7051]

This is lame

[@owenculletonpersonal1248]

Jeepers 854 views

[@trekkiejunk]

My interest is less about 'why' people are quitting KZbin, and more about their need to make these self-important, weepy videos about their quitting. Johnny Carson had a majority of US households watching him when he quit. A staggering hold on the market and ubiquitous to American culture. He gave a 2-minute thank-you in his last episode. Even these big KZbinrs are just one of THOUSANDS with a similar draw in the market, nowhere near Carson's reach. But they all give these speeches that sound like the world is changing forever with their departure. It's this entire self-important Millennial culture with the need for everyone to validate them. So gross.

[@RodolfoAmbriz]

We’re talking about media with different approach. Internet videos are far more intimate and a personal experience than television. More “human”, niche, democratic and without rules, because it is user generated content. Internet users like you and me interact on a more personal level, sharing our lifes and knowledge on-demand without time constraints or “TV etiquette”. TV appealed to the masses and has a schedule compel, that’s why Carson didn’t farewell a whole episode.

[@sammiller6631]

Those KZbinrs gave their _real_ reasons. Stop trying to put your words in their mouth with this clickbait nonsense. You should be ashamed of this blatant attempt of chasing views.

[@maggierayner9408]

What a bunch of word salad BS - no wonder views are down. A waste of time. Specific examples and business reasons pls.

[@matthewbarabas3052]

so... basically, all those people have an inability to make a sustainable income with a sustainable pace. and thats why i always tell you, get a *real job.* youtube isnt meant for careers.

[@oneandonlytyler1]

this guy is so annoying

[@user-ex3mx7hk4l]

This guy is the BEST presenter EVER!

[@LifeWithRilla]

Stick to the f'ing point and stop with the annoying jokes bro... seriously this video was so annoying to watch

[@user-ex3mx7hk4l]

I quite enjoyed it! He made me LOL for REAL. If you think this job is so easy why don’t you do more videos, Mr. Engineer Rilla? I get your criticism - my Dad was an Engineer and he didn’t have much of a sense of humor, either. Y’all so SERIOUS about everything! But we all have room to grow, Rilla. ❤

[@LifeWithRilla]

effeciency is everything to us don't waste our time and get to the point@@user-ex3mx7hk4l

[@jemimagrace8062]

Im not a KZbinr but I can relate to that burnt out feeling. 90% of my life is work just to barely scrape by. My heart goes out to everyone struggling 🫶