Lesser-known YouTubers band together on ‘Demonetization Day’

The day many smaller YouTubers feared has finally come.

YouTube will put into effect today new criteria for creators to join the company’s Partner Program, which enables members to earn AdSense for their videos. YouTube first announced in January that creators will now need to have accrued 4,000 hours of watch time in the past 12 months and maintain a minimum of 1,000 subscribers; a stricter criteria compared to YouTube’s previous policy that called for 10,000 total channel views. YouTube gave creators just over a month to prepare for the changes, but not everyone could meet the criteria set up by the company within the 30-day timeframe.

Lesser-known YouTubers have started campaigning on Twitter through different hashtags, including #DemonetizationDay and #SmallerYouTubers, to bring attention to one another’s work. Other creators are releasing videos to help smaller creators learn to build their channels so they can reach the coveted threshold put in place by YouTube.

“Happy demonetization day everyone,” one YouTuber wrote. “And BTW, [fuck you] @YouTube. Keep fighting the system, keep growing, and keep giving the algorithm fits.”

The most popular hashtag being used today, and one of the recurring themes, is #SmallYouTuber or #SmallYouTuberArmy. These are generally YouTubers with less than 1,000 subscribers who create videos on more niche topics. Although much of the conversation is around the actual demonetization process (and the literal lack of funds they’ll have going forward), there’s a bigger conversation about feeling isolated from the bigger YouTube community.

“Sub for Sub doesn’t help anyone,” another YouTuber wrote. “YouTubers aren’t looking for a high sub counts, they’re looking for active friendly people who they can proudly say are part of their community. But that could be just me.”

It’s a sentiment that has quickly echoed around YouTube. Creators like Christine Barger, known for creating niche videos about escape rooms and general lifestyle topics on two different channels, posted an emotional video last month when YouTube first announced the changes.

“I feel stupid for crying because, honestly, it’s silly; it’s not like it’s millions of dollars,” Barger said. It’s not about the money. It’s about the fact that I’ve been a part of YouTube for a really long time, and I’ve finally tried to be a part of this platform, just to feel like they don’t care about small creators.”

People could be feeling more glum, but they’re not. The general attitude swirling among some members with smaller followers — who make up a large portion of YouTube’s community — is positive and hopeful, despite the emotional reckoning the day has wrought. Creators are leaning on one another to try and help every channel meet the criteria needed to be considered eligible for the Partner Program.

Although YouTube’s new rules won’t directly affect the most-watched, popular creators on YouTube, they’re not ignorant to what’s happening on their platform. Markiplier, a YouTuber with close to 20 million subscribers, told Polygon that this is part of trying to make a living on YouTube, saying “the rules will change and other things will get in your way, but when you have those obstacles in front of you, you can’t just bow to the pressure on you.

“You have to keep moving forward,” he said. “Just keep working.”

Markiplier’s opinions were shared by those in the top YouTuber circle, including PewDiePie and Keemstar, who tweeted back their thoughts when the January decision came down. Keemstar acknowledged that YouTube was battling a growing problem with channels designed to scam users, while PewDiePie spoke about how it took a long time for him to make a living off of YouTube content when he first started his career. Markiplier said something similar.

“Nobody going into YouTube at that time could have ever anticipated they were going to make a living off of it,” he said. “Now there’s an expectation that if you work hard enough you can make it, but it’s not true. Some people will work hard all their lives and they will not make it. That’s the reality of the world that we live in.”

Despite the numerous people tweeting about Demonetization Day, a statement from YouTube claims that 99 percent of affected channels were making less than $100 in the past year, and 90 percent earning less than $2.50 in the last month. The statement noted that “after thoughtful consideration, we believe these are necessary compromises to protect our community.”

YouTube’s statement did nothing to quell the anger and hurt that came from the community, and the company released a subsequent notice trying to rationalize its decision to change the rules.

Our recent changes to the YouTube Partner Program (YPP) are designed to curb bad actors, stabilize creator revenue and provide greater assurances to advertisers around where their ads are placed. By making these updates to YPP, we aim to help creators of all sizes find more success. We have many free resources in place such as our Creator Academy and YouTube Spaces to help those just starting out build a community around their channel so that they can ramp-up fast and monetize their videos.

What’s clear from today’s testimonies is that the loss hits an emotional core. Creators feel like they’re being booted from a community they once believed they belonged to. It’s a sad day for many of YouTuber’s lesser-known creators, but as they find one another on Twitter and Reddit, linking to their channels and asking for people to like and subscribe, they’re still full of hope for the future.

“Farewell me old pal [sic],” a YouTuber wrote on Reddit. “It was fun to be part of the YouTube Partner Program for the last 3 years, but I won’t let this get me down. I will just keep trucking on and I would recommend everyone else should too.”