Popular video-sharing website YouTube may open its office in Bangladesh as early as in two months as the US-based company is considering the South Asian country as a new business hub.
A delegation for YouTube, a subsidiary of search engine giant Google, is set to visit Bangladesh next week.
The delegation will meet several people including the government ministers and private sector stakeholders to discuss its potential move to the country.
“We hope YouTube will open office within two months. YouTube is considering Bangladesh as a new business hub,” Telecoms and ICT Minister Mustafa Jabbar told Bangla Tribune.
On a possible timeline for YouTube starting operation in Bangladesh, the minister said, “A source confirmed that YouTube is opening its office by October.”
According to analysts, YouTube’s possible move came after the website witnessed a significant rise of users, channels, user-generated contents as well as big-budget marketing contents.
Quoting a private satellite television’s top official, Jabbar said that they have informed of achieving ‘golden button’ for their YouTube channel.
YouTube recognises channels with a ‘Gold Creator Award’ after its reaches one million subscribers.
On YouTube contents, the minister said, “The number of contents generated from Bangladesh is less for the time being. Television channels are adding their contents.”
“There is a huge demand outside the televisions’ contents, we have to seize it,” the minister said before adding “The tv channels’ revenue from YouTube have multiplied by at least 10 times since they started to upload contents.
Several local satellite televisions have achieved the ‘Gold Creator Award’ and ‘Silver Creator Award’ for their YouTube channels.
YouTube gives ‘Silver Creator Award’ after a channel reaches 100,000 subscribers.
Tech analyst welcomed YouTube’s possible Bangladesh foray.
“It’s good news for Bangladesh and it indicates how much importance YouTube has been giving to Bangladesh,” said Arif Nezami, CEO of Dhaka-based tech firm Preneur Lab.
Nezami’s Preneur Lab is also a YouTube Trusted Flagger.
The video-sharing website developed the ‘Trusted Flagger’ programme to provide robust tools for individuals, government agencies, and non-governmental organizations (NGOs) that are particularly effective at notifying YouTube of content that violates its community guidelines, according to its website.
“As the ‘trusted flagger’ if we send any review on a controversial content the YouTube authorities check it with highest priority,” said Nezami.
According to him, views on a YouTube video sometimes exceed from the views of the video on social network website Facebook that may be another reason to open a new office.