The launch of the local version of YouTube represents good news for creators, too, as it is a first step for introducing the opportunity to become a partner.
Later this year, YouTube will also expand its YouTube Partnership Programme (YPP) to Malta, making the programme available to the growing ecosystem of local creators. This enables creators to earn money from their videos and have access to a wide range of tools and resources to make the most of their content on YouTube.
Creators can already access online lessons via the YouTube Creator Academy to get started and learn best practices, while the Creator Community gives creators a place to meet each other, find collaborations and more.
Parliamentary Secretary for Financial Services, Digital Economy and Innovation, Silvio Schembri, expressed great satisfaction over YouTube’s decision to launch a country specific version and local domain for Malta available in English at youtube.com.mt.
“This decision is a result of discussions the Maltese government had with Google. After having noted the petition of local content creators for Malta to be included in Google’s YouTube Partnership Programme, we actively lobbied with Google both on a national and European level. It is of great satisfaction to see that in the coming months Maltese talent will finally be rewarded for their content created and posted on youtube.com.mt. We encourage all content creators to use this channel responsibly, to take the opportunity to promote their talent and our country. I personally thank Google for the trust shown in Malta, for listening to our concerns and for their contribution in bolstering Malta’s digital economy,” Mr Schembri said.
Maltese MEP Francis Zammit Dimech said: “YouTube is a very important platform, especially for young artists who want to get out there and grow. Therefore, I welcome the launch of a country specific page and plans to later also compensate content generators to continue to support local artists and offer further quality content to users. This is something I truly believe in and in fact, I have been working on this matter with the Maltese YouTube community.”
Fabian Borg, founder of Creators Malta, who took the initiative to petition Google to include Malta in the YouTube Partnership Programme, said: “I welcome Google and YouTube’s approach to localise their content-sharing platform, thereby giving Maltese content creators a level playing field with fellow creators in the EU and internationally. I see this as the start of the process towards the full inclusion of Malta into the YPP, which will finally gives Maltese content creators the opportunity to commercialise their activity while at the same time creating a new economic sector for the country.”
Enrico Bellini, Public Policy Manager, Google, said: “We have heard loud and clear the requests from our local community in Malta and we hope that with a dedicated domain and the upcoming open up of the YPP in September, we help pave the way for the work of more Maltese creators, artists and musicians to shine on the world’s most vibrant video community.”