How NCS Got 65x More Watch Time from Two 24/7 Streams
NCS (NoCopyrightSounds) ran two 24/7 streams with Tribecast on its NCS Arcade channel. In 17 months, the streams earned 65x more watch time than every other video on the channel combined, and brought in 2.3x as many new subscribers.
NCS 24/7 - Copyright Free Music Livestream, powered by Tribecast
+6,400%
Watch Time vs. All Other Videos
+1,658%
Longer Average View
+131%
More New Subscribers
+82%
More Repeat Views (up to)
NCS Arcade YouTube Studio, 20 Feb 2021 to 10 Jul 2022. Each figure compares the two 24/7 streams with every other video on the channel combined in the same period.
NCS (NoCopyrightSounds) is the British record label that changed music rights for creators. It makes monetizable dance music that anyone can use, and it has become one of the biggest music brands on YouTube, with billions of views on its channels.
In February 2021, NCS launched its first 24/7 live stream with Tribecast on the NCS Arcade channel. A second stream followed in May 2021. Over the next 17 months, those two streams became the engine of the whole channel: 1.3 million hours of watch time, 26,975 new subscribers, and 2.8 million views.
The Challenge: A Huge Catalog, Short Visits
NCS has one of the deepest electronic catalogs on YouTube. But a single upload gets a short visit. On NCS Arcade, regular videos held viewers for about one to one and a half minutes. Then the viewer left.
Running streams in-house had also meant managing servers and a team. NCS wanted to:
- Keep viewers listening for longer than one track
- Turn the catalog into a place fans come back to
- Grow subscribers without uploading more videos
- Stop running stream servers and staff themselves
"No longer do we rely on managing our own servers and team to sort our live streams."
— NCS
The Solution: Two Always-On Streams, Run by Tribecast
Tribecast turned the NCS catalog into two non-stop streams. The tracks played around the clock in NCS's look, with the current track and artist on screen, so every listener could find the music again. Fans voted for songs they loved with a !love chat command. Tribecast ran the servers and the streaming, so the NCS team didn't have to.
Always On
Fans found NCS music live at any hour, in any time zone, without waiting for a new upload.
Algorithm Boost
Long, steady watch sessions told YouTube to keep recommending the stream: 78 million impressions.
Fully Managed
Tribecast handled the servers and kept the streams up around the clock. NCS kept its team on the music.
The Results: The Streams Became the Channel
Watch Time and Views
Audience and Loyalty
Watch time went up 6,400%. The two streams earned 1,318,072 hours of watch time. Every other video on NCS Arcade, combined, earned 20,275 hours in the same period. The streams were 98.5% of the channel's watch time.
Viewers stayed 17 times longer. The average view on the main stream lasted 27 minutes and 51 seconds. Regular videos on the channel held viewers for 1:01 to 1:35. That is an increase of 1,658% over the longest of them.
Daily views on NCS Arcade. Green and blue are the two 24/7 streams.
Subscribers: 131% more than from uploads. The streams brought in 26,975 new subscribers. Every other video combined brought in 11,676. That is 70% of all the channel's new subscribers in the period.
Fans kept coming back. In the last 90 days of the period, each stream viewer watched 1.8 to 2.0 times. Viewers of regular videos watched 1.1 to 1.3 times. That is up to 82% more repeat visits.
Why 24/7 Streaming Works for Music Labels
A Catalog Plays Longer Than a Track
An upload ends after one song. A stream keeps going. The same NCS music held viewers for nearly 28 minutes instead of 90 seconds, simply because it never stopped.
Watch Time Compounds
YouTube rewards content that keeps people watching. Steady, long sessions earned the streams 78 million impressions, and every recommendation brought new fans to the channel.
A Place Fans Return To
A stream is always there. Fans came back almost twice per period, turning one-time listeners into a regular audience and, in nearly 27,000 cases, into subscribers.
The NCS 24/7 Live Radio, featured at the top of the main NoCopyrightSounds channel (33.9M subscribers)
"Tribecast has been a game-changer for us. The Tribecast team has always been quick to support us in any way we need and have always been keen to help us with any custom solutions we need."
— Daniel J. Lee, Director at NCS
Key Takeaways for Music Labels
Your Catalog Is the Content
NCS didn't make new videos for the stream. Music it already owned produced 98.5% of the channel's watch time.
Session Length Beats Clicks
A 27:51 average view is 17x a regular upload. Long sessions are what YouTube rewards.
Streams Win Subscribers
The streams brought in 2.3x the new subscribers of every other video combined.
Let Someone Else Run It
NCS stopped managing its own stream servers. Tribecast kept the streams running around the clock.
What Could Your Catalog Do on a 24/7 Stream?
If you own a music catalog, your next growth engine may already be in your library. Tribecast turns it into an always-on stream and runs it for you.
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