Google's approach to Azerbaijan, which includes the YouTube platform, is consistent with its general global approach. The main reason for this is the absence of a Google office in Azerbaijan.
Elvin Abbasov, Chairman of the Board of the Azerbaijan Information and Communication Technologies Industry Association, stated this in a statement to Modern.az.
According to him, the opening of a Google office in neighboring Turkey occurred at the initiative of that country's government:
"However, Google's actual presence in Azerbaijan is not considered profitable for the company. This is because the Azerbaijani segment covers only 10 million people, which is considered very small on a global market scale".
Elvin Abbasov noted that for the company to have an individual approach to a specific country, it is crucial to have an official office in that country and to operate legally, paying taxes.
He stated that previously, CIS countries could receive certain support through the office located in Moscow. However, due to the sanctions imposed by the US on Russia because of the Russia–Ukraine war, Google has left its Moscow office. Currently, support to countries in the region is mainly provided in an online format:
"The opening of a Google office in Azerbaijan does not mean that the incomes of local content creators will significantly increase. The main factor in this matter is not the existence of an office, but the weight of the audience in the global market".
Elvin Abbasov stated that "youtubers" operating in Europe and the USA earn 5–10 times more income compared to Azerbaijani "youtubers", even if they operate at the same volume.
He noted that Google's commencement of operations in Azerbaijan in the near future is not a realistic idea.
It should be noted that the income generated from viewership on "YouTube", one of the world's largest video platforms, is not the same for all countries. The amount paid to content creators on the platform primarily varies depending on the country where the viewers are located and the level of the advertising market in that country.
Furthermore, "YouTube" does not make direct payments based on the number of video views. The main revenue on the platform is generated from advertisements placed in videos. In other words, content creators earn income not from their videos themselves, but from the advertisements shown to users during those videos.
The platform retains approximately 45 percent of that income for itself, while 55 percent goes to the content creator.
Income is primarily calculated using CPM (Cost Per Mille) and RPM (Revenue Per Mille) systems. CPM represents the amount paid by the advertiser for 1000 ad views, while RPM expresses the real income received by the content creator from 1000 total views.
The main reason for the varying payment amounts across countries on the platform is the level of development of their advertising markets. For example, in countries like the USA, Canada, and the United Kingdom, advertisers allocate higher budgets because the advertising market is large. For this reason, income on YouTube is higher for views originating from these countries.
According to approximate calculations, advertising revenue for 1000 views in the USA, Canada, and the United Kingdom averages 8–25 dollars, while in Germany and Scandinavian countries, it ranges around 6–20 dollars. In Turkey, this indicator is approximately 1–5 dollars, and in Azerbaijan and regional countries, it is usually between 0.5–2 dollars. In India and some Asian and African countries, this amount may vary in a lower range.
