YouTube is expanding its YouTube Shorts business. Starting in early 2023, Shorts creators who reach 10 million shorts views over 90 days can apply to earn money through YouTube’s Partner Program.
Creators will earn 45 percent of the money generated from ads that run between Shorts videos. Revenue from those ads will be pooled at the end of the month and each creator will be paid based on their share of total shorts views. The ad money will also go to covering the costs of music licensing, which YouTube says will not affect the creator’s earnings.
Neil Mohan, YouTube’s Chief Product Officer, told press that this is “the first time real revenue sharing is being offered for short term video on any platform at scale.” It’s a huge investment into Shorts, which YouTube says is now logging over 30 billion views from 1.5 billion logged in users a month.
The YouTube Partner Program launched in 2007. In the last three years YouTube says it has paid creators, artists, and media companies more than $50 billion through the program. In addition to the updates to Shorts monetization, YouTube will also be adding a new tier to the Partner Program “to help creators start making money earlier in their journey.” It will have a lower requirement and “easier access to fan funding features like super thanks, Super Chat, Super Stickers and channel memberships.”
