YouTube has proudly highlighted the rising popularity of YouTube Shorts amid concerns over a US TikTok ban. On Thursday, YouTube Shorts reported over 70 billion daily views and revenue sharing for more than a quarter of Partner Program channels.
This comes after TikTok reported a 250% increase in creator fund revenue in the preceding six months. TikTok's year-old fund, which replaced the $1 billion Creator Fund, has exited testing.
In September 2022, YouTube began monetizing shorts producers as part of its Partner Program expansion. Long-form content creators formerly needed to fulfill subscriber and viewing hour criteria for revenue sharing. Since early 2023, shorts creators with 1,000 subscribers and 10 million views over 90 days might receive 45% of ad income.
YouTube Shorts Emerges as a Viable Revenue Stream for Creators
The video-streaming giant stresses that this initiative has been running for a year. YouTube also notes that YouTube Shorts producers typically monetize in other ways. More than 80% of YPP Shorts creators also make money via long-form advertising, fan fundraising, YouTube Premium, BrandConnects, shopping, and other sources. This shows that short-term material typically supplements producers' other revenue streams.
YouTube boasts that its 16-year-old YPP has over 3 million creators and has paid out $70 billion to creators, artists, and media organizations in the previous three years. The platform claims this statistic exceeds all other creative monetization platforms, likely targeting TikTok.
Meanwhile, businesses are worried about US Congress's probable move to ban TikTok in the country or force its Chinese parent firm, ByteDance, to sell to a non-Chinese organization.
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There are 170 million US TikTok users which is why companies spent $6.2 billion on TikTok advertising in 2023.
Bipartisan legislative concerns arise from the suspicion that the Chinese Communist Party controls TikTok owner ByteDance. Lawmakers worry about the Chinese Communist Party using TikTok's vast data gathering, which includes location data, facial and voice recognition, keyboard patterns, and contact information.
US lawmakers also worry about TikTok's impact on public opinion and mental health.
(Photo : AFP via Getty Images)
This picture taken in Moscow on March 19, 2022 shows logos of Youtube social media on a smartphone screen.
TikTok Legal Woes in The US Mount
As of now, the federal government and 40 states have banned TikTok on government-owned devices and networks. Similar prohibitions have been enforced elsewhere.
President Joe Biden earlier expressed support for a US TikTok ban and compel its sale to a non-Chinese firm.
First Amendment considerations make legal experts question the bill's viability in court. The TikTok ban legislation's fate depends on a court review, with comments on its constitutionality.
If the TikTok ban measure passes, US corporations may sue over its constitutionality. Businesses may also consider VPN access to TikTok from places where it is still available or switching to Instagram Reels or YouTube Shorts.
In another update, the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) has wrapped up its long-term investigation into TikTok's privacy and security procedures. The commission has been investigating the popular short video-sharing platform for data privacy and safety violations, particularly involving children's data, for years.
TikTok may face legal repercussions from the FTC's investigation. The investigation also scrutinizes TikTok's 2019 FTC settlement compliance, encompassing COPPA compliance and Chinese data access. TikTok now confronts legal hurdles and U.S. operations uncertainty and calls for ByteDance to sell the app as the FTC's probe nears its close.
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