In an effort to combat skulduggery on its platform, YouTube announced plans today to institute new restrictions on which YouTubers can earn money from the ads shown on their videos.
If you’re a dev who maintains a YouTube channel, note that starting today, YouTubers in YouTube’s Partner Program will not be able to monetize the ads on their videos until their channel surpasses 10,000 lifetime views.
Going forward, anyone looking to join the Program will not be allowed to apply until they hit the same viewcount milestone, at which point YouTube exec Ariel Bardin claims the company will “review their activity against our policies.”
The idea, according to Bardin’s blog post on the new requirement, is to cut down on instances of people profiting off YouTube while abusing the platform (say, by stealing someone else’s video and reuploading it as their own) or producing videos that violate YouTube’s community guidelines or advertiser policies, both of which prohibit things like harassment, discrimination and hate speech.
“These new thresholds will help ensure revenue only flows to creators who are playing by the rules,” writes Bardin. “We believe this new application process will help ensure creator revenue continues to grow and end up in the right hands.”