Twitter’s Ads Revenue Sharing Program Goes Global, Allocating $5 Million in Creator Payments

Earlier this month, Twitter, now rebranded as X, introduced its “Ads Revenue Sharing” program, which aimed to share ad revenue with verified creators to retain top talent on its platform. Now, the company has officially announced that the program is available for eligible creators worldwide.

X’s owner, Elon Musk, mentioned in his tweets that the program aims to distribute $5 million in the first round of creator payments, starting from February onwards. Creators have already reported substantial payouts ranging from five to six figures.

Eligibility Requirements and Monetization Strategy

To be eligible for the Ads Revenue Sharing program, X users must subscribe to Blue (formerly Twitter Blue) or Verified Organizations. Additionally, they need to have a minimum of 15 million impressions on their cumulative posts within the last 3 months and at least 500 followers, as stated on the program’s official website.

X has chosen to monetize the ads displayed in the replies to creators’ posts instead of the ads in the main X timeline. This approach incentivizes creators to generate content that encourages conversation. However, X has implemented some guidelines to ensure responsible usage. Notably, sexual content, violence, criminal behavior, gambling, drugs, alcohol, and “get-rich schemes” are strictly prohibited. Furthermore, creators cannot attempt to monetize copyrighted content that they do not own.

Global Availability and Future Plans

With the recent announcement, the Ads Revenue Sharing program is now globally accessible for creators who meet the eligibility criteria. The official X account emphasized its commitment to becoming “the best place on the internet to earn a living as a creator” with this initial step.

Linda Yaccarino, X’s CEO, expressed her enthusiasm, calling it “an absolute game changer for our creators.”

X’s Monthly User Growth and Industry Analysis

Elon Musk also shared a chart on Twitter, suggesting that X’s monthly users reached a new high in 2023, even after bot removal. However, the chart lacks specific labeling for the months and does not clarify Musk’s definition of “monthly usage” compared to the industry standard MAU (monthly active user).

Contrasting Musk’s claim, third-party measurement tools, including Cloudflare CEO Matthew Prince, have pointed out declining traffic to the Twitter domain. Similarweb has also reported decreases in Twitter traffic following the launch of Threads.

Despite these conflicting reports, X’s global launch of the Ads Revenue Sharing program demonstrates the platform’s commitment to supporting creators and cultivating a thriving creative community.