The news: YouTube users streamed over 700 million hours of video podcasts on their TVs in October. That’s nearly double the 400 million hours in October 2024, per Bloomberg.

Interest in the content and the ability to view it on connected TVs (CTVs) is driven by the platform’s increased investments in discovery and search tools, according to Steve McLendon, YouTube’s head of product for podcasts.

Zooming out: In February, YouTube CEO Neal Mohan announced that users are watching content on TVs more than on any other device, including smartphones. In November, the platform accounted for 12.9% of all time spent streaming in the US, up 19.4% YoY and more than any other streamer, per Nielsen.

Video podcasts are an increasingly popular medium that streamers like Spotify, and even Netflix, are racing to support. While Netflix and YouTube are in close competition for streaming dominance—Netflix will average 39 minutes of daily time spent and YouTube will average 42 minutes in 2026, per our data—YouTube continues to lead in podcast consumption.

This could be driven in part by YouTube’s multifaceted content library, which ranges from theatrical releases and casual user-generated content (UGC) to high-budget video podcast content.

Why it matters: Video podcasts on CTV combine the lean-back engagement of TV with the targeting, user engagement, and speed-to-market power of digital advertising, making them an effective way to capture attention as traditional TV viewing splinters.

• The rapid rise of video podcast consumption on CTVs conveys that podcasts are no longer a primarily mobile or passively consumed format.
• This elevates podcasts into the same strategic bucket as premium streaming TV, which supports bigger screens, longer sessions, and more immersive ad experiences.

What marketers should do: Capitalize on the flexibility of YouTube’s cross-format reach to test creative placements in video podcast content, repurpose social video assets for CTV consumption, and gain greater insights into conversion and visibility than can be offered by linear TV.

Keep media mixes diverse—don’t ditch email marketing and paid social just to jump on the video podcast train—while using demographic and contextual targeting tools to best align branded content with video podcast hosts’ genre and vibe.