RPM will break down how creators earn their YouTube money, including that which comes from advertising, channel subscriptions if applicable, donations and live streaming features.
Tom Armstrong, an Australian comedian whose YouTube channel, The Roundabout Crew, has 116,000 subscribers, said the changes were welcome but overdue. As until now, he has been receiving a monthly payment from YouTube without any idea of what it would be.
“It seems like something that really should have just been there from the start,” Mr Armstrong said.
“When it comes to metrics, the more we can get the better, as it really does inform our content choices and how you approach everything. So, if you know more details about what people are engaging with, and what advertisers like and don’t like, it’ll really inform decisions.”
He added that most creators find out about key YouTube changes either via the company’s blog or by seeing new features randomly appear on the site, rather than through any direct prior consultation with the company.
The new metric will not change the cut YouTube takes from creator ad revenue or how much creators make on the platform, but it will help them better understand how they are making their money.
“RPM is a snapshot of the rate at which you’re earning money on YouTube,” a new blog on Google’s support pages reads. “Whether RPM goes up or down, it’s a good indication of things that are working or not working in your revenue strategy.”
For years, YouTube creators have demanded the platform show greater transparency about the cut the Google-owned company takes from ad revenue, and why certain content types can be monetised but others are deemed to not be brand safe. The introduction of a creator-side RPM is a step in that direction.
Harrison Cox, an Australian YouTuber with over 100,000 subscribers on his music and comedy channel The Slendy Show EDM & Comedy, said that creators have a long history of wanting the company to be more upfront about the cut they take from ad revenue.
“YouTube has quite a long history of pissing off YouTubers, and making them feel unappreciated on the platform, so this sounds like a good step forward in terms of transparency,” he said.
“It will be interesting to see what their clip of the ticket actually is – I think that that will be an eye opener for a lot of creators.”
The way that creators can make money on YouTube has evolved since it first hit the web in 2005.
From 2019, YouTube introduced alternative revenue streams beyond ad revenue for its creators who have successfully monetised their channels including channel memberships (subscriptions), livechat features like Super Chat, which allows users to “tip” their favourite YouTube stars, and merchandise shelves that work like digital shopfronts housed on creators’ channels.
However, Mr Cox said that even with the addition of diverse revenue stream options for creators, some channels cannot always access these new features if their content triggers the platform’s copyright breach system.
Mr Cox said his view on the dispute between Google and the ACCC was mixed because, on the one hand YouTube had a history of getting its own creators offside, but on the other he did not think it was fair for large news media organisations to get “special treatment” over independent creators.
“It will be interesting to see whether or not people buy into the ‘Uncle Google’ concept of them looking out for people, or whether they are just looking out for their own interest,” Mr Cox said.
“That still sits a little bit uneasily with me, but from what I have seen at least in the response on social and YouTube, it is that the majority of YouTubers are siding with Google. I haven’t see anyone side with the Australian government at this point.”
It is unclear how the code would play out in practice for news media organisations with a YouTube presence vis-à-vis YouTube’s vast independent creator community.
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