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takyon [soylentnews.org] writes:

With Instagram looming, YouTube is trying to keep its creators happy [qz.com]

YouTube is realizing it needs to treat its creators better, now that rival Instagram is making a play for them [qz.com] with its own video platform, IGTV.

The video service announced on Thursday [googleblog.com] three new ways for YouTubers to make money on its platform, during a presentation at the online video convention, VidCon, in Anaheim, California.

In the next few months, audiences will be able to support their favorite channels within YouTube by paying $4.99 per month to become a member of that channel's community and get access to exclusive posts, videos, live streams and other perks offered by the creator. The program, called Channel Memberships, will be available to channels with 100,000 subscribers or more that meet certain standards [google.com], like being eligible for ads and run by creators over the age of 18. The feature, previously called Sponsorships, launched last fall on YouTube Gaming [techcrunch.com] to compete with rival streaming services Twitch, and will soon be made available on YouTube more broadly.

YouTube is also partnering with custom t-shirt company Teespring to allow creators to customize and sell merchandise directly through their channels, as of this week. Many YouTubers, large and small, already make and sell merchandise on their own for extra cash. Not to mention, hawk it incessantly in their videos.

Your video channel has been demonetized. Sorry about that :/

Previously: Facebook/Instagram vs. Twitch and YouTube [soylentnews.org]

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