RTL’s 'Cobra 11' Revival Drives 26% Sub Growth on YouTube — SkimNews
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- RTL Deutschland uploaded over 200 full episodes of 'Cobra 11' to YouTube, generating 30 million views and attracting an audience that is 83% male with an average age of 30.
- Stephan Schmitter, CEO of RTL Deutschland, stated the YouTube strategy successfully reintroduced 'Cobra 11' to younger viewers who then migrated to RTL+ for new content, boosting subscriptions by 26%.
- Ad Alliance, RTL’s advertising sales arm, reported near 'double-digit millions' in additional revenue by offering advertisers a cross-platform package including YouTube, linear TV, and RTL+.
- YouTube’s Pedro Pina argued that legacy broadcasters partnering with the platform create a self-reinforcing model that revitalizes existing IP and expands audience reach.
- France Télévisions previously launched a similar strategy, placing 20,000 hours of content annually on YouTube, leading to an eightfold increase in views for franceinfo in September.
Why it matters: Broadcasters like RTL and France Télévisions are turning aging content into new revenue by leveraging YouTube’s reach among younger audiences, with RTL already seeing a 26% subscription bump and double-digit millions in ad gains—proving legacy IP can be monetized beyond traditional channels.
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