YouTube is making it easier for small creators to monetize their presence on the platform by lowering the eligibility requirements for its YouTube Partner Program. The company has announced that creators with just 500 subscribers will now be able to participate, down from the previous threshold of 1,000. The change is part of a broader effort to make monetization more accessible to a wider range of creators, with YouTube also opening up a variety of monetization methods to smaller creators, including paid chat, tipping, channel memberships, and shopping features.
Other benchmarks are also being adjusted, with participating creators now needing 3000 valid watch hours instead of 4000, or 3 million Shorts views compared to the original 10 million. This change will initially roll out in the US, UK, Canada, Taiwan, and South Korea in 2023 and sooner in other countries.
While smaller creators will still need to grow their audience to earn revenue from ads, YouTube’s new policy offers greater opportunities for creators to monetize their content through other means. The existing YPP requirements will remain in place for revenue sharing, but creators won’t have to reapply to the program once they hit the higher requirements.
Platforms like TikTok have also lowered the bar for creator monetization features, with its video paywall feature, Series, now available to creators with more than 10,000 followers. Users with just 1,000 followers who meet other requirements can also apply to participate in the program. Series gives creators the option to share premium content that fans can pay to access.
Smaller creators are now getting a chance to make money from fans and followers who are willing to pay for additional content, and interactions, or who simply want to support creators financially. Monetization features like tipping or paywalls are available across other creator platforms and require an audience that’s willing to spend money.
YouTube’s move to open up monetization to smaller creators comes as the company seeks to compete with other platforms like TikTok and Instagram, which have been investing heavily in creator monetization tools. By offering a wider range of monetization options, YouTube is hoping to attract more creators to its platform and keep them engaged over the long term.
The shopping affiliate program, previously available by invitation only to select creators, is now also available to YPP participants in the US with at least 20,000 subscribers. This allows creators to earn a commission on sales of products that they promote in their videos.
Overall, YouTube’s new policy is a positive step for smaller creators who are looking to monetize their content on the platform. With lower eligibility requirements and a wider range of monetization options, creators can now earn revenue from their content more easily and build sustainable careers on YouTube.
