In a Thursday disclosure which evidently underscores the popularity of Google's YouTube video-sharing website, South Africa YouTube partnership manager Jared Molko revealed that, in 2012, the number of YouTube viewers in South Africa increased 80 percent; with uploads having witnessed a growth of 30 percent.

According to Molko, the revenue handed out to South Africans who had uploaded their videos on YouTube witnessed a 60 percent year-on-year increase in 2012.

So far as the sub-Saharan Africa region is concerned, there was a whopping 90 percent increase in YouTube viewership and 40 percent increase in video uploads last year; with South Africa leading the region with the maximum number of playbacks. Across the globe, viewers watched an astounding 4-billion hours of video footage every month.

Meanwhile, as per a statement by Luke Mckend - country manager of Google South Africa -, there was an over 50 percent year-on-year increase in spending by the top 100 global advertisers on YouTube last year.

Noting that "YouTube has the power to directly target customers, a factor that is invaluable to any organisation," Mckend said: "In addition, on average, spending on YouTube was approximately 2.4 times more efficient than the equivalent television spend."