Hard Design: Video Streaming Platform (YouTube/Netflix)

Why does YouTube use view count approximations (e.g., 1.2M views, not 1,234,567)?

— Tests your understanding of this concept.

Answer Options

A YouTube doesn't track exact views

B To protect creator privacy

C Exact counts require synchronous DB writes — approximation allows high-throughput async counting with periodic DB sync

D Google regulations require approximation

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This question is from the Design: Video Streaming Platform (YouTube/Netflix) topic (System Design Cases).

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