Mark Rober becomes the latest YouTube star to secure Netflix deal

Annabel RackhamCulture reporterGetty ImagesMany of Mark Rober’s movies have greater than 100 million views on YouTubeFormer Nasa engineer Mark Rober has develop into the newest YouTube star to get his personal Netflix deal.The 45-year-old has greater than 70 million subscribers on YouTube and is understood for his movies about science and know-how.Rober has created a brand new competitors sequence for the streamer, which he’s making with US discuss present host Jimmy Kimmel’s manufacturing firm.Rober is following within the footsteps of another common YouTubers – Netflix signed up kids’s entertainer Ms Rachel earlier this yr and struck a take care of British YouTubers The Sidemen in 2024.Getty ImagesRober (left) has beforehand appeared on Jimmy Kimmel’s discuss showKimmel, who has featured Rober a number of occasions as a visitor on Jimmy Kimmel Reside!, mentioned: “We won’t wait to introduce among the best and brightest creators to Netflix.”He added: “Mark’s movies are so intelligent and creative, it is simple to overlook that they are instructional”.Rober’s movies routinely rack up no less than 10 million views, with many breaking the 100 million barrier.Media advisor Jo Redfern mentioned streaming giants like Netflix are signing up profitable YouTubers as a result of they’ve a confirmed monitor document and massive fanbases.”They are not in a single day successes, they’ve frolicked constructing their audiences, iterating their content material and taking a look at what works,” she advised the BBC.Plenty of these content material creators are “self-shooting producers, administrators and editors [who] have a specific talent set that’s uncommon and missing from a variety of streamers and broadcasters”, she mentioned.The SidemenThe Sidemen have been making movies for greater than 15 yearsWhile Ms Rachel’s YouTube present was introduced over to Netflix in its unique format with 4 unique episodes, Rober will develop a very unique present for younger audiences.Animated present CoComelon, which began on YouTube in 2006, was acquired by Netflix in 2020 – however the firm has lately chosen to not renew its deal.The present, which has slightly below 200 million subscribers on YouTube, is now shifting to Disney+.’A component of kudos and legitimacy’The Sidemen, which is made up of seven British content material creators, took their actuality present Inside to Netflix and are additionally aiming to make a US model.Chatting with the BBC final yr, Vik Barn mentioned he and the opposite Sidemen members had “hit the restrict” of what they may obtain on YouTube.Redfern mentioned for creators like The Sidemen, who’ve been approached by streamers and broadcasters, “there’s nonetheless a component of kudos and legitimacy to working with these platforms”.”They [the creators] are good operators and media companies in their very own proper and so they know that to be reliant on YouTube as their major platform is dangerous,” she added.They’re eager to department out as a result of it’d solely take “an algorithm change to kick in” for his or her YouTube enterprise fashions to be disrupted, Redfern mentioned.Getty ImagesMr Beast’s first season of Beast Video games for Amazon Prime was marred with controversy however has been recommissionedMaking the change from YouTube is not at all times plain crusing, although, as proven by Mr Beast’s 2024 Amazon Prime present Beast Video games.The sequence supplied 1,000 individuals the possibility to win a $5m (£3.5m) prize and was marketed as the most important dwell sport present on this planet.Nonetheless, a US lawsuit continues to be ongoing with various individuals, who declare they have been mistreated on set of the present.Amazon reportedly invested $100m (£74m) within the first sequence however Mr Beast nonetheless says he went over price range throughout manufacturing.Regardless of this, Beast Video games has been renewed for 2 extra seasons, based on Selection, which additionally mentioned the sequence attracted 50 million viewers within the 25 days after its premiere.Streaming giants and broadcasters usually take into consideration “the place future followers are coming from”, mentioned Redfern, however she added that there’s a concern that younger audiences could get “subscription fatigue”.The advantage of YouTube is that it’s free to entry, which Redfern says “could be very compelling”, whereas it additionally provides many creators beneath one roof.