Google's subscriptions rise in Q4 as YouTube pulls $60B in yearly revenue

Group 1: Revenue and User Growth - YouTube's subscription and ad revenue is on the rise, with 325 million paying users across Google One and YouTube Premium, an increase from 300 million three months prior [1] - YouTube's ad revenue grew by 9% to $11.38 billion in Q4, although it fell short of analysts' expectations of $11.84 billion [2] - Overall revenue for YouTube, including ads and subscriptions, reached $60 billion for the full financial year, marking a 17% increase year-over-year [2] Group 2: Subscription Services and Offerings - The $8 per month ad-free YouTube Premium tier is experiencing strong traction, although specific user numbers were not disclosed [2] - The company plans to expand its subscription offerings, particularly for YouTube TV, with new plans that will provide over 10 genre-specific packages [3] Group 3: Content Engagement and AI Features - YouTube Shorts achieved 200 billion average daily views, consistent with the previous year, and in some regions, ads on short-form videos generate higher revenue per hour than in-stream ads [4] - The podcast format is gaining popularity, with viewers watching 700 million hours of podcasts from their TVs in October [4] - More than 1 million channels are utilizing YouTube's AI creation tools, and 20 million consumers engaged with its Gemini-powered content discovery tool in December [5]