Google Drive video player gets new ‘Open Count’ feature

Over the past year, Google has been quietly refining the video experience inside Google Drive. From rolling out a sleeker interface to introducing smart tools like auto-generated captions and searchable video transcripts, the platform has steadily become more capable as a lightweight video hub. Now, Google is adding another layer of utility – engagement analytics.

Starting today, Drive users will be able to see how many times their videos have been opened, thanks to a new “Analytics” section that now lives in the Details panel of any video file. This feature gives users a basic, but highly useful, metric, which is the total open count. It’s designed to answer a simple question – are people actually watching your video?

Here’s how it works

If you’ve got a video in your Drive and want to check its engagement, open the file, click on the three-dot menu in the top-right corner, select Details, and scroll to the newly added Analytics section.

Right there, you’ll see the number of times the video has been opened, which is a handy data point if you’re sharing internal trainings, school projects, or anything that benefits from feedback by way of viewer interest.

For administrators, there’s nothing to configure. The feature is enabled by default and requires no additional setup. The rollout is already complete for Rapid Release domains. For Scheduled Release domains, it’s expected to go live starting June 9, 2025, with visibility arriving over the next few days.

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The feature is available to all users, whether you’re on Google Workspace, Workspace Individual, or even a free personal account. For a product that’s often used for everything from casual content sharing to professional collaboration, this update helps bring just a little more clarity to how your videos are being received.