YouTube wants to encourage creators, and wants them to earn revenues from the platform, especially those who post short videos or shorts. Competition from TikTok led YouTube to consider the revenue sharing afresh. It has extended its YouTube Partner Programme (YPP) to short creators too. In addition, there is Creator Music feature planned. It makes it easier to navigate licensing music for content creators on the platform as a whole.

From next year, i.e. 2023, creators who reach 10 million shorts views over 90 days are eligible for partnership. They will receive all the benefits of YPP. They will share revenue, and would benefit from different ways to earn revenue from the platform. It is for the first time that real revenue sharing is being offered for short videos. Short ads are not attached to the specific videos. They are run in-between videos in the shorts feed. The revenue from all the shorts is pooled together and payout is made to shorts creators, and would cover the costs of music licensing.

In traditional longer videos, there are dedicated ads to the videos. In shorts, ads are not dedicated to specific shorts. Ads appear in the feed. The pooled revenue from the ads is shared — creators get 45 per cent. The revenue share remains the same, even if music is used.

YouTube, thus, is terminating its Creators Fund. It is unable to keep pace with the growth of the shorts.