Andy Samberg: The Hilarious King of YouTube

Posted by Danny Shea, Huffington Post at 10:24 AM on December 16, 2008.

AdAge's Michael Learmonth declares Andy Samberg King of YouTube as he reports that SNL's digital short "Jizz in My Pants" is the most-watched YouTube video of the past month, clocking in thus far at 6.7 million views. Of course, what makes this interesting is that "Jizz in My Pants" is one of the rare SNL clips available on the Google-owned YouTube:

NBC has a tortured relationship with YouTube, and takes a hard line toward enforcing copyright. The video's presence on YouTube likely has something to do with the fact that the song is the first single from Universal Music Group's upcoming release, "Incredibad," and the label has some interest in building an audience for it. The video was uploaded by Samberg's production company, The Lonely Island.

NBC is trying to make a buck from the short on its own site via advertising from Nissan and Wrigley's, where the video is receiving far fewer views (561,000). NBC also gets 70%-80% of the ad revenue from sales on Hulu.com, which doesn't disclose views but is running the video with an Absolute Vodka ad.

Last month, Ars Technica speculated that Samberg's viral hit "Lazy Sunday" was responsible for YouTube's $1.5 billion sale. The video, which debuted in December 2005, is widely credited with introducing YouTube to America, but NBC had it removed from the site so it could host it exclusively in its own player.

Watch Samberg's hit clips below:

The latest, Jizz in My Pants:

The first, Lazy Sunday:

One of my personal favorites, a modest hit (1.2 million views is modest by Samberg standards, and he only makes a brief cameo, as cunt-dude Steve), Just 2 Guyz: