In 2025, YouTube generated $40.4 billion in ad revenue. That alone would be a major milestone for a streaming platform. But the real headline is what that number eclipses: the combined ad revenue of Disney, NBCUniversal, Paramount, and Warner Bros. Discovery totaled just $37.8 billion. YouTube—with its primarily user-generated content—surpassing the major studios in ad revenue signals a major shift in the media landscape.
