The Tube on YouTube: TV Series, Media Strategies, and User Tactics in a Transmedia Environment

This study analyzes the traffic generated on YouTube around television series. We selected a sample of 314 short YouTube videos about 21 Spanish TV series that premiered in 2013 by Spain’s three most popular mainstream television networks (Telecinco, Antena 3, and La1). These videos, which together received more than 24 million views, were classified according to two key variables: the nature (official or nonofficial) of the YouTube channel on which they were located and the exclusivity of their content (already broadcast on TV or Web exclusive). The analysis allows us to characterize the strategies used by TV networks on YouTube and the activity of fans as well as their efforts in the construction of a transmedia narrative universe around TV series.