YouTube outage explained: how it disrupted service and how it was fixed

YouTube, YouTube Music, and YouTube TV services were disrupted between 15 and 16 October, with millions of users worldwide reporting problems watching videos on the platform.

The outage affected streaming for several hours, leaving users unable to load or play content on any of YouTube’s major platforms.

The issue, which drew widespread attention across social media, triggered confusion among creators, streamers, and advertisers who rely on the platform for daily engagement.

YouTube later confirmed that the problem had been resolved, but the company did not reveal the cause of the global disruption.

Users report widespread video playback issues

The outage began when users across the United States started reporting playback errors and missing videos.

According to Downdetector, thousands of people reported issues within an hour of the disruption, with many experiencing problems playing or loading videos on YouTube, YouTube Music, and YouTube TV.