Hasan Minhaj's secret to Netflix success: Patriot Act having its own YouTube channel

Slate

Neither The Break with Michelle Wolf nor The Joel McHale Show with Joel McHale  had their own YouTube channel. Their clips were released on Netflix's official YouTube channel, which releases trailers and clips for the streaming service's more than 800 titles. "Patriot Act, however, has taken full advantage of the opportunity to extend its reach, putting entire episodes on YouTube as well as digital-only clips, a strategy that has helped it stand out from the glut of content that Netflix releases every week," says Nikhil Venkatesa, adding that "putting full episodes of Patriot Act on YouTube runs contrary to Netflix’s ethos of exclusivity." As Patriot Act co-creator Prashanth Venkataramanujam explains: “We wanted to just make the show as accessible as possible. … Early on, I think there was maybe some confusion about how the rollout would go, or maybe some hesitancy, but since, Netflix has been super supportive and they’ve been super happy about having taken this approach.” Having its own YouTube channel has helped Patriot Act build up its audience and distinguish itself outside the giant Netflix bubble.