Page 43 - 2022 Abstract Book RUICHSS_2022_11_17 after conference

University of Ruhuna ISSN: 2706-0063
Matara, Sri Lanka

An Analysis on the Practice of YouTube Content Creation by
the Sri Lankan YouTubers as Next Generation Mainstream
Platform for Video Media; an Innovative Solution for the
Economic Crisis

D. Randula Podduwage
Drama and theatre and Image Arts Unit, University of Kelaniya.
drandula@gmail.com

Among many streaming media platforms, "YouTube" is the largest and most popular
video-sharing platform. YouTube is the key reason behind online video culture.
YouTube has given an opportunity to video creators to earn through their video
content. Accordingly, creating videos for YouTube freelancers, nowadays identified
as ‘YouTubers’, is one of the most recognized professions in the world. Thus,
YouTube can be used as an effective method by the Sri Lankan YouTubers to
overcome the current economic crisis in Sri Lanka by earning foreign currency. The
study is focused on how content creators used their video creation practices to
succeed on the YouTube platform. The study mainly focused on the top 200 YouTube
channels in Sri Lanka and narrowed it down to the most viewed 15 video creations
from the most subscribed 15 channels. Film linguistic elements, story-telling
elements, visual elements, and creativity of these video contents have been analyzed
through the content analysis method. Further, the study has discussed how to develop
the overall quality of these video contents to increase the popularity of the YouTube
channels created by the Sri Lankan YouTubers based on the gathered data. The study
evidently proved that contents created by the top Sri Lankan YouTube channels lack
the qualities of Originality, Creativity and they have not considered philosophy and
theoretical values, in their video productions.

Keywords: Next Generation Collaboration, Streaming Media, Usage and Practice in
Sri Lanka, Video Content Creation, YouTube

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