X, the social media platform formerly known as Twitter, has disbursed approximately $20 million to its creators, as announced by X CEO Linda Yaccarino. This significant payout highlights the platform’s efforts to incentivize content creation and monetization for its users.
This initiative was initiated in July as part of a broader strategy aimed at revitalizing the platform after a significant decline in advertising revenue following Elon Musk’s takeover. The former CEO of X and now its Chief Engineer, implemented substantial changes to the platform’s workforce and operations, resulting in over 2,500 layoffs in October Last year. This overhaul, coupled with a decline in ad revenue, prompted the need for new initiatives. Ad revenue sharing was introduced, allowing creators to earn a portion of the advertising revenue generated from ads displayed alongside their posts, particularly when interacting with other verified users.
To qualify for this program, users must meet specific criteria, including:
- Subscribing to X Premium.
- Maintaining more than 500 followers.
- Accumulating over 5 million tweet impressions in the last three months.
The program made its debut with the first payments in July, which encompassed earnings from February onwards and totaled approximately $5 million, as confirmed by CEO Linda Yaccarino. The recent revelation of $20 million in payments indicates that either more creators have joined the program or X’s ads are generating a significant increase in impressions.
Creators now have added incentives to encourage user engagement with their tweets. While fostering discussions and interactions has always been a goal, it’s known from platforms like Facebook that content evoking strong emotions tends to drive higher engagement.
Traditionally, Twitter has not been a platform favored by creators for monetization due to the challenges in converting a following into revenue. In contrast, platforms like YouTube have offered revenue-sharing opportunities for creators in their partner program for over a decade. With X’s new ad revenue-sharing program, creators have a compelling reason to subscribe to X Premium and become more active on the platform, potentially transforming the landscape of content creation on X.
The substantial payouts to X creators signify a shift in the platform’s strategy, aiming to attract and retain content creators, bolster engagement, and ultimately reshape its identity in the competitive landscape of social media.