YouTube down: Site not working for some users, while videos appear fine for others

Many people are reporting that they can't watch videos on the site

A picture illustration shows YouTube on a cell phone, in front of a YouTube copyright message regarding a video on an LCD screen, in central Bosnian town of Zenica, early June 18, 2014 (Reuters)

YouTube appears to have broken – but only for some people.

Many people are reporting that they can't get onto the site, and can't watch videos there. But for others, pages loaded fine.

It's not clear what is deciding whether the site and app is working or not. Problems usually happen for everyone if they happen at all, or are isolated to specific locations and servers.

Some also reported that they were able to get online using the YouTube app, but that the website wouldn't load at all.

The problems are widespread across the world, according to the website Down Detector. That site showed them being particularly focused in the west coast of the US and Japan – though it may be simply that more people are using the site there, owing to timezones.

Since it is owned and run by web giant Google, problems with YouTube are relatively rare. But when they happen they can have major effects – not only because so many people use the website, but also because its videos are embedded across the internet.