YouTube now accused of streaming pirated content — and possibly profiting from it.

That’s according to an article in The New York Times, based on a new Adalytics report. Google admits in the piece: “mistakes happen.” But why do we, as an industry, continue to accept this? It’s immensely frustrating — and the report reveals so much more.

Their response? In my view, underwhelming. Claiming Adalytics is “just after business.” (Brilliant. DV tried that one too. So did TAG.) NYT journalists independently fact-checked and reproduced it on their own. This is why I keep pressing major media voices like Evan Shapīro to challenge platforms like YouTube on their claims and push for transparency — rather than simply cheerlead and encourage broadcasters to upload their libraries of content.

Recently, YouTube quietly changed how it counts a “view”, then got criticized for promoted inflated numbers off the back of that shift. That too went unchallenged. Advertisers are being sold a narrative that sounds stronger than the reality.According to Adalytics, YouTube also served ads alongside content that violated its own policies — and didn’t refund advertisers. That’s not a good look. I’ll share more on the report’s specifics later this week.

Why does this matter? Because YouTube is going hard after TV ad dollars. It now holds a 6–8% share of TV viewing outside the U.S. — a stat that’s broadly consistent across markets. As broadcasters upload more content to the platform, those figures will climb — and advertisers will follow. Broadcasters could be strengthening YouTube’s sales pitch — without necessarily benefiting themselves.AND - the jury’s still out on whether broadcasters can actually make money on YouTube. Many are trying.

Most are struggling.TV, by contrast, remains one of the few highly regulated video ad environments where you can trust the content is brand-safe — and advertisers pay when a real human watches an ad to completion. (I'm not saying it's perfect but that's the aim and it generally works. And no, I don’t mean the murky long-tail CTV space bought through non-transparent pipes.)

Let me be clear: I think YouTube can be a force for good. I don’t know where I’d be without it — helping my son and I complete a Black Ops Zombies map, fixing a 10-year-old washing machine, or figuring out a complex video rig. It’s brilliant. Which is exactly why this nonsense is so unnecessary. I'd love it to play in the small pool as TV.

I’m not anti-YouTube. I’m anti-skullduggery.