YouTube is considering adding NFT features for its creators ๐จ This article is 3 years old...
YouTube is considering adding NFT features for its creators
YouTube joins other social media giants and is dipping its feet into the world of NFTs.
1 min read
Updated: Jan. 25, 2022 at 4:22 pm UTC
Cover art/illustration via CryptoSlate. Image includes combined content which may include AI-generated content.
Video creators could soon see NFT features added to YouTube, the platform’s CEO Susan Wojcicki said earlier today.
In an annual letter to creators sent on Tuesday, Wojcicki said that YouTube sees Web3 as a source of inspiration for new ways to improve the platform.
NFTs are coming to YouTube
YouTube is joining the likes of Facebook, Instagram, and Twitter in looking for alternatives to its advertisement-based business model. The company has spent several years building ways for its creators to earn money beyond ad monetization, introducing features like e-commerce and direct fan payments.
Non-fungible tokens, Wojcicki said, could find their way into the platform as well.
In her annual letter to YouTube creators, she said that the platform has turned to Web3 to find new and more efficient ways for its creators to earn money.
“Weโre always focused on expanding the YouTube ecosystem to help creators capitalize on emerging technologies, including things like NFTs while continuing to strengthen and enhance the experiences creators and fans have on YouTube,โ she wrote in the letter.
Wojcicki also noted that YouTube will also be prioritizing developments in gaming, shopping, music, and “Shorts,” its TikTok copycat feature.
This marks the first time Google, which owns YouTube, has acknowledged the potential of NFTs. Other major social media platforms such as Twitter have already embraced the NFT craze, enabling users to post their verified NFTs as profile photos. The popularity of this feature has even pushed Instagram to consider a similar offering.
YouTube providing its creators with the ability to issue NFTs could the platform at the forefront of the NFT market. With 2.3 billion active monthly users, over 31 million channels, and 30 million paying subscribers, YouTube could be fertile ground for another NFT boom.
Author 
Andjela Radmilac
Armed with a classical education and an eye for news, Andjela dove head deep into the crypto industry in 2018 after spending years covering politics.
