Another day, another major YouTube controversy. YouTube has updated its Terms of Service that includes a new section giving it the right to monetise videos from channels that aren’t part of its YouTube Partner Program.
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The programme changed in recent years where channels needed to be of a certain size, with a certain amount of watch time to qualify to be monetised. It was said to be because of YouTube not being able to monitor and curate the vast amount of content that was being uploaded and to focus its efforts a channel needed to be of a certain size.
This change means that YouTube can start earning revenue from ads served on these smaller channels’ videos (as long as it meets its ad-friendly guidelines), but the creator itself cannot earn anything. To become eligible for the YouTube Partner Program, a creator must be living in a country where it’s active, has to have 4,000 public watch hours in the last 12 months and has to have over 1,000 subscribers.
The change in terms says that the user now grants “YouTube the right to monetize your Content on the Service (and such monetization may include displaying ads on or within Content or charging users a fee for access). This Agreement does not entitle you to any payments.”
