Not likely. I haven't had YouTube installed on my device in 18 months (mostly because of Google's insistence on using it as an authentication verifier).

I don't miss it.

I still don't get the point of that app, aside from a few misc features like Chromecast. YouTube works in-browser.

YouTube works in browser, but the native iOS app offers a much more polished experience than the mobile web UI, especially for actually browsing the library.

I'm not so sure about that because it gives them more ways to bother you about stuff.

How so?

It can ask for permissions like push notifications, I can't install ad-blockers on it, and they otherwise get more control over it. They even seem to intentionally treat web users a little better, cause I just got a full-sized homepage ad in the app for TikTok of all things, with a download button. The site doesn't have that, and I made sure to disable my blocker. Maybe they consider app users more captive of an audience, or they simply bring changes to it first that are generally about further monetization.

Not a huge deal though. In the past, pre-iOS-10 Safari was immune to the "no background playback" rule the app had, and before that, the site had no preroll ads while the app did, so it was a clearer difference.

YouTube's dominance is due to a network effect and the complexity of monetizing and moderating video hosting.

If YouTube pulled itself from iOS devices, a shell company of Apple's would create a competitor in three months.

It would be more likely that Google bundled Chrome and YouTube into one app.

Hell, maybe they'd do that with mail and calendar as well.

If Roblox, Youtube and Netflix went Android only then I'd be replacing all of our iPads with Android Tablets post-haste.

> if Roblox, Youtube and Netflix went Android only then I'd be replacing all of our iPads with Android Tablets post-haste

Sure. Most wouldn’t. YouTube and Netflix would lose tens of billions of present value overnight. Hell, Apple might capture a good fraction of that surplus.

Yeah sure, people will give up on YouTube and Netflix to use iOS, that's not going to happen. They'll suffer through using Safari to access those and that'll reduce the perceived value of iOS devices for future purchases since it will be seen as clunky and not seamless.

Not being able to use YouTube properly is also one of the reasons (among others) of why Windows mobile failed.

Youtube is a monopoly and there's no way around it.

> people will give up on YouTube and Netflix to use iOS, that's not going to happen

People will swap phones to watch short-form videos? (But not the young; they’re on TikTok. Nor anyone in other streaming demographics.)

> Youtube is a monopoly and there's no way around it

Wat. Where are you getting this? Spotify has better churn statistics than YouTube.

Tiktok is additional to Youtube, it doesn't replace it. Teens are using both TikTok and Youtube. They are different formats.

Youtube Shorts is there especially because it's a different market that they want to capture.

> Wat. Where are you getting this? Spotify has better churn statistics than YouTube.

Unless you live in the few countries where YouTube has a competitor, they have a 100% market share on this kind of format.

Youtubers don't even bother to republish the video somewhere else because they know themselves that its a monopoly.

> they have a 100% market share on this kind of format

YouTube videos being the format?

Google owns YouTube. Google pays Apple tens of billions to keep its search front and centre. If Google thought YouTube had the leverage you do, wouldn’t you think they’d try swinging that around?

> YouTube videos being the format?

Youtube is the TV of the 21th century, it's not only the format but what you find there which is unique.

> If Google thought YouTube had the leverage you do, wouldn’t you think they’d try swinging that around?

Because there's no competition between both companies? Why would they do that? Google is pretty happy about their current position.

Yeah sure there's a few countries where it's not the case, that's why I mentioned that but it's rare.

People can usually replace the app X with an app Y but there's a few apps which are categorically needed on a phone otherwise it hurts the phone itself. Banks & government apps are part of those and Youtube is one as well.

Those are the ones really preventing a third company to join in.

Youtube is somewhere between number 2 and 5 in traffic ranking in Japan. What are you on about?