YouTube has made an announcement regarding the introduction of revenue sharing for YouTube Shorts, which is scheduled to commence on February 1st. This week, a fresh agreement for the YouTube Partner Program will be implemented, as revealed in a video on the YouTube Creators channel. It is obligatory for all creators who generate income through the Partner Program to accept the new agreement, and they must sign it before July 10th to ensure their monetization privileges are maintained. YouTube has redesigned the new agreement to incorporate “Modules,” which are intended to provide creators with greater flexibility in their YouTube earnings.
In order to proceed, every creator is required to agree to the “Base Terms,” encompassing content policies and three additional segments. The initial section is referred to as the “Watch Page Monetization Module,” and it pertains to long-form or live stream content across all YouTube platforms. By opting for this module, creators gain the ability to earn revenue from videos watched on the YouTube website (or apps), as well as from content embedded on external websites.
The most noteworthy new inclusion is the “YouTube Shorts Monetization Module,” enabling the monetization of short-form content on YouTube. Starting from February 1, 2023, eligible Shorts will have the opportunity to generate revenue through advertisements or YouTube Premium. Once creators have signed the agreement, they will begin earning money from Shorts immediately after the aforementioned date.
It has been announced that non-original content will not qualify for revenue sharing. This encompasses unedited clips from movies or TV shows, content sourced from other creators on YouTube or other platforms, as well as compilations lacking original material. Additionally, views on Shorts that are generated by click/scroll bots will not be eligible. YouTube also provides further explanation regarding the distribution of revenue from Shorts.
The updated Partner Program now incorporates a “Commerce Product Addendum” that facilitates Fan Funding features such as Super Chat. If you have already chosen to participate, there is no need to sign again specifically for this section. However, channels that do not accept the revised terms of the Partner Program by July 10, 2023, will be excluded from the program. As a result, all monetization will cease, and re-qualification will be necessary in order to rejoin the program.