YouTube announces major overhaul in monetisation policy: What’s changing from July 15?

In a major move that is set to shake up the digital content landscape, YouTube has announced a sweeping update to its monetisation policy, effective from July 15, 2025. The changes are aimed at curbing repetitive, AI-generated, and repurposed content, and restoring quality and authenticity on the platform.

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Over the years, YouTube has seen an explosive rise in the number of channels and creators, with many leveraging artificial intelligence, text-to-speech tools, and recycled video clips to earn money with minimal effort. Some have even been uploading the same video multiple times or editing others’ content slightly and re-uploading it. YouTube now plans to clamp down on such practices.

As per the new rules, creators who frequently upload identical videos or post altered versions of others' content will be disqualified from monetisation. This includes AI-narrated videos with robotic voices, low-effort videos with no educational or entertainment value, and content created purely for financial gain. The aim is to protect original creators, improve content quality, and reduce platform abuse.

Repetitive content, whether it's the same video re-uploaded or AI clones of trending videos, will no longer be monetisable. YouTube has stated that even though it hasn’t explicitly named AI in the policy, auto-generated videos with no human touch may also fall under this restriction.

Previously, creators needed 1,000 subscribers and 4,000 watch hours within 12 months (or 10 million Shorts views in 90 days) to be eligible for monetisation. These requirements remain unchanged, but the content itself now must meet stricter originality and quality standards.

This marks a significant shift from YouTube’s earlier openness to reused or AI-assisted content, signaling a push to reward genuine creativity and human effort in video production.