YouTube Plans to Share Ad Revenue with Shorts Creators

YouTube has announced a major change to its partner Program that will enable its short-form video creators to make more revenue from its platform. The Shorts revenue share program will start rolling out in early 2023, though YouTube did not specify, which countries would get this first.

The changes, which go into effect “early next year,” could help YouTube draw creators away from its rival TikTok, where creators have often complained about low creator fund pay-outs. “This is the first-time real revenue sharing is being offered for short-form video on any platform at scale,” YouTube Chief Product Officer Neal Mahon said during an event announcing the news.

With the new revenue sharing program, creators with at least 1,000 subscribers who get 10 million views on Shorts in a 90-day period can apply to join the Partner Program. Like TikTok, ads on Shorts appear between videos in the feed. Revenue from the ads will be pooled and divided among creators, Mohan said. Creators will get a 45 percent cut of the ads, irrespective of whether they use music.

“Each creator is paid on their share of total Shorts views, and this revenue share remains the same, even if they use music,” he explained. The company also said it would start testing its tipping feature, called Super Thanks, in Shorts “with a complete rollout expected next year.”

YouTube also announced a new tier for the Partner Program that would make it easier for early-stage creators to start monetizing their content. The new tier, which is called “Fan Funding,” will have “lower requirements” for accessing features like Super Thanks, Super Chat, stickers and channel memberships, Mohan said. YouTube said it would share more details about the requirements in 2023.