In two years, YouTube has built out YouTube Shorts, a TikTok-style feature for short video clips. Now it’s about monetizing the content and sharing the revenue.
Those creators with at least 1,000 subscribers and 10 million Shorts views over a 90-day period will be able to apply in early 2023 to participate in YouTube’s revenue-sharing program. The new partners “will enjoy all the benefits our program offers, including the various ways to make money like ads on long-form and Fan Funding,” said Amjad Hanif, YouTube VP of creator products.
As part of the ad-revenue sharing program, YouTube also announced a new way for creators to license music for their videos.
Shorts ad-revenue sharing operates like this: Ads will run between videos in the feed, and the revenue generated each month will be shared between Shorts creators to handle music licensing costs. Of the overall allocated revenue, creators will take a 45% cut based on their Shorts views rate, which is the same as what it is for long-form YouTube Partner Program (YPP) videos. Hanif emphasized in a blog post on Tuesday that “the revenue share remains the same, regardless of whether or not music is used”.
We are able to reward all YPP creators who make up the Shorts experience by using this new approach, not just those who run videos next to ads. Also, since music fuels many of our most memorable Shorts, it simplifies the complexities of music licensing, so creators don’t have to worry about whether to use music in their Shorts.
Google boasted in June that YouTube Shorts has more than 1.5 billion monthly logged-in users as it fought for share against TikTok, the ByteDance-owned app that has rapidly gained popularity. YouTube launched a $100 million fund for YouTube Shorts a year ago to encourage the creation of short clips, which would pay creators $10,000 per month for the best videos.
“Under this new [advertising] model, which was designed for long-term sustainability,” Hanif said that we expect that our Shorts Fund recipients will earn more money in the future. Instead of a fixed fund, YouTube Shorts is doubling down on the revenue-sharing model that has supercharged the creator economy and enabled creators to benefit from its success.
YouTube has recently unveiled Creator Music: a source of music licensing in YouTube Studio designed to help creators add tracks to their long-form videos. Hanif explains that with this feature, creators will be able to purchase licenses at economical prices and receive the same revenue as they would with no music. Moreover, if creators don’t want to pay upfront, they can use songs and split earnings with artist and rights holders. Traditionally, the extensive process for obtaining permission for third-party songs made monetizing these videos not possible; however, this new system resolves this issue.
Currently, in beta, Creator Music is available in the U.S. and will expand to other countries in 2023. “We think Creator Music will result in more amazing creator-artist collaborations, more new tunes in viewers’ playlists, and more opportunities for artists to break through while putting money in the artist’s pockets.” Hanif wrote.
YouTube launched the YouTube Partner Program for ad-revenue sharing in 2007 and now counts millions of creators who make money from their videos. YouTube has paid creators, artists, and media companies over $50 billion USD in the last three years.
Thousands of creators are also getting the Super Thanks “tip-jar” feature in beta for Shorts, with the full rollout expected next year. By purchasing, highlighted Super Thanks comments, creators can interact with their fans and show their appreciation for their favorite Shorts. As part of its annual YouTube Brand Connect event for advertisers, the platform plans to bring brands and Shorts creators together.
In addition, YouTube also announced that it will introduce a “new level” of the YouTube Partner Program with lower requirements that will provide earlier access to fan-funding features like Super Thanks, Super Chat, Super Stickers, and Channel Memberships. We will have a path for long-form, short, and live creators to join in this new year 2023.
YouTube Partner Program participants must have at least 1,000 subscribers and have accumulated at least 4,000 watch hours.
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