The factors that have resulted in YouTube's impressive growth and popularity are also undermining its efforts to generate profit, according to an IDC report, writes CNET. YouTube's audience has grown accustomed to not only not paying for the service but also not having advertising clutter the video-sharing experience, according to IDC research analyst Josh Martin.

YouTube has said it would slowly introduce online advertising in the coming months to the site, which accounts for 40 percent of the video-sharing market and has more than 13 million visitors each month. Martin says ads are the way to go, but it won't be easy, because its users may defect to similar sites without ads.

There's also the question of copyrighted material being uploaded, as well big advertisers' concerns about unseemly content. And despite the site's agreement with NBC to post promotional videos, users want the edgy, hilarious stuff - not mainstream content.