YouTube wants to make it easier for advertisers to connect with “edgy” content that fits their brand.
In her latest quarterly letter, YouTube CEO Susan Wojcicki outlined some of the platform’s upcoming plans.
In the past 12 months, there has been a 65 per cent increase in the number of creators with one million subscribers or more and a 40 per cent increase in creators earning five or six figures (USD).
This means monetisation strategies are as important as ever. Wojcicki explained “supporting creator success” remains a key priority for the platform.
To assist with this, YouTube is making it easier for brands to connect with popular creators that may be deemed “edgy” by some.
Previously, videos that might be violent in nature or cover sensitive topics have faced demonetisation, as they are considered unfriendly for advertisers.
But now the Google-owned platform is working to match such content with advertisers that might be interested in the audience.
“We’re also running experiments to help match content that could be considered edgy with advertising that fits their brand,” Wojcicki said.
“As you know, yellow icons are a signal that only limited advertising can run on a particular video because of its content.
“We’re working to identify advertisers who are interested in edgier content, like a marketer looking to promote an R-rated movie, so we can match them with creators whose content fits their ads.”
She said the program had yielded “hundreds of thousands” of dollars in ads on videos that display the yellow icon.
Wojcicki also heralded changes coming for gaming creators that differentiate between real-world violence and gaming violence.
In the past, YouTube’s demonetisation policies have meant gaming creators lost some advertising revenue for displaying graphic gameplay.
“The new policy will have fewer restrictions for violence in gaming, but maintain our high bar to protect audiences from real-world violence,” she said.
