YouTube has released a premium subscriber-only version of YouTube’s Shorts. In addition to the standard membership benefits like livestreams and personalized emojis, this new tool enables creators to share Shorts just with their members.

Encouraging viewer engagement

The purpose of introducing Members Only Shorts is to entice viewers to become premium members. This feature allows creators to notify their subscribers about announcements, new product releases or time-limited deals. They can also use it for previews of future videos, Q&A sessions and behind-the-scenes material.

Creators can now easily mark their Shorts as members-only on YouTube. When uploading a Short, creators can use the members only option under the visibility options. They can also schedule Shorts to transition from members-only to public, giving their subscribers early access to content before it’s available to everyone else.

A new viewer experience

To give viewers a more personal glimpse into their lives, YouTube urges creators to maintain a relaxed and natural style for their Members Only Shorts. Exclusive Shorts, denoted by a star icon to signify their exclusivity, will be visible to subscribers on the creator’s channel, in the Shorts tab and in the Subscriptions feed.

The launch of Members Only Shorts comes as TikTok expands its subscription offerings to more creators. With more than 70 billion views every day, YouTube’s Shorts platform has experienced tremendous development. Furthermore, almost 25% of YouTube Partner Program channels make money from their videos by using revenue-sharing on Shorts.

More monetization for Shorts

YouTube has been looking to beef up its available incentives to entice viewers to become paying members for their favorite creators’ channels. We will have to wait and see if paywall Shorts will be enough to boost membership numbers.