Very, very few YouTube video creators make any real money off of those pre-roll ads, but that might soon change. Google has launched Fan Funding, a new way to tip your favorite YouTube stars directly from the video. Here’s how it works: when you play a video from a channel that accepts donations, you’ll see a little icon in the top left corner of the video. Hovering over it will reveal a banner, in some cases. Or you might see a pop-up directly on top of the video where you will be asked how much money you wish to donate.
YouTube thrives off the videos produced by independent content creators all over the world, and while it compensates many of them through ads, that money is hardly enough to make a living off of in most cases. Earlier this summer Google said that producers would soon have the option to request donations right on their YouTube pages. The feature’s live now, so here’s a look at how it works. When you’re watching something produced by someone who’s willing to accept donations, an icon will appear in the top left corner of the video. In some cases, hovering over that icon will reveal a banner with the option to support to current channel. In other cases, clicking on the item will bring up a pop-up message on top of the video. Interacting with this message will pull up a window where you can decide how much money you wish to donate.
