This logic only applies for companies in a competitive business environment.
YouTube is a video monopolist - they know that it is an awful service for viewers, but there's no need to improve things because where else would viewers go?
Unfortunately, they are also part of a conglomerate that has reached full dominance in several online markets that are not growing. And they need to show quarter-on-quarter growth to shareholders. So you can't capture more market share, and there aren't any more people discovering the Web, so you stick additional ads everywhere. These people know exactly what they are doing.
YouTube is a video monopolist - they know that it is an awful service for viewers, but there's no need to improve things because where else would viewers go?
Unfortunately, they are also part of a conglomerate that has reached full dominance in several online markets that are not growing. And they need to show quarter-on-quarter growth to shareholders. So you can't capture more market share, and there aren't any more people discovering the Web, so you stick additional ads everywhere. These people know exactly what they are doing.