One Word YouTube Hopes You Do Not See Tonight During the Chargers-Chiefs game: Buffering
Here is knowledge you can use while watching “buffering” on your device at your not-so-annual First Friday NFL football party:
The top three videos with the most views on YouTube are:
- Baby Shark Dance – no relation to the Left Shark
- Despacito
- Wheels on the Bus – No relation to – The wheels are falling off the bus after the Cowboys trade Micah Parsons
Ok, there is a lot to unpack in that one sentence and three bullet points. Let’s get started.
The Connection between YouTube, Friday Night, and the Sports Broadcasting Act Of 1961
Nothing says Friday Night Lights like an NFL game, from Brazil, between two AFC West Division foes, the Kansas City Chiefs and Los Angeles Chargers, 8 p.m. ET on YouTube. It is so unique it will go down as a once in a long time event. The reason for this: the Sports Broadcasting Act of 1961. If you do not remember the details of this from history class, you can jump on YouTube and become the 270-ish person to view the details.
Don’t want to lose eight minutes of your life and listen to a young lady go on and on in a monotone voice? Ok, here is the answer – The Sports Broadcasting Act of 1961 prohibits NFL games in the second week of September through the second week of December. For those who flunked calendar reading in second grade, for the last two years, Labor Day weekend has been early enough that the NFL has been able to play a Friday game because it is in the first week of September.
Last year, that same calendar trick allowed us to watch the Philadelphia Eagles and Green Bay Packers. Next year, Labor Day is September 7. So the first Friday after Labor Day is September 11, which is the second Friday in September, which is abolished as an option due to the Sports Broadcasting Act of 1961.
There is talk of a Wednesday game from Australia that week next year. There is talk of starting the season on Labor Day weekend again, which the NFL did before 2002. I imagine if you looked at the internet long enough, there is talk that the first game is played minutes after Travis Kelce and Taylor Swift say “I do” on the 50-yard line…which would occur before the pre-game spitting contest from the 35-yard line, which is a new NFL first game of the season tradition.
What does this have to do with YouTube? Absolutely nothing, but it proves a point that this Friday’s game in September is unique, and I got a Taylor Swift reference in the story.
YouTube, the Website – Not YouTube the YouTubeTV
As you probably know, YouTube TV plays all the normal channels and used to charge you about $35, and now it’s upwards of $80ish. You get CNN, ESPN, and local stations. Normal TV via a streaming service in competition with Fubo, Hulu Live, Sling TV, and countless others. Although YouTube TV will broadcast the game, it is not necessary to watch. Can you imagine the furor that would have caused? Ask Peacock TV if you are curious.
YouTube.com, meanwhile, is known for the kitten videos and the aforementioned Baby Shark Dance, Despacito, and Wheels on the Bus. It is NOT KNOWN for Live TV. Or, better stated: Not known for live TV of this magnitude.
Streaming a live event, with millions and millions of viewers watching on their iPad, phone, computer, and TV with internet access. Geez, what could go wrong? Well, millions and millions of people streaming the same thing at the same time can cause issues. When Wheels on the Bus was in the process of racking up 7.9 billion views, it came at different times, days, and years. A sporting event is all of us on the bus at the same time. Examples like MLB TV having streaming issues opening day this year, a playoff game on Peacock, the Mike Tyson vs. Jake Paul on Netflix… are a short list that has others with event streaming issues.
But wait, that is not an apples-to-apples comparison because YouTube is streaming the game. Not Netflix. Not MLB TV. So what could go wrong? Wait, maybe something could go wrong. Just last month, do you remember the Aug. 13 New Heights podcast? It had our favorite Kelce and Swift duo (along with brother Jason) doing a podcast, and the online feed just dropped about one hour and 45 minutes into the show that went on for two hours. It was more confusing than The Sopranos’ final episode.
The online platform for the show that had the glitch that happened with a mere one million online viewers? Yep, YouTube.com, the online version. The good news? You don’t have to pay to watch “buffering” across the screen for minutes, maybe hours. And it is a unique, probably once in a long time, first Friday in September party that you do not have to end with “see you next year.”
