Innovation

Does Google really want you to make money on content?.

Oct 05, 2017 | By InPlayer

Google: Can’t work with it, can’t work around it. Recently the search giant has made two moves that both help and hurt content creators, making us scratch our collective head to wonder, “What do we need to do now?”

Penalty-free paywalls

The first change is actually good for content creators who want to make money from subscriptions to their content via paywall (i.e. anyone who uses InPlayer to generate revenue). Just last week, Google announced that it is loosening its rules on including paywalled news content in search results.

Before the change, Google would penalize any news site that asked viewers to pay for content, either as a one-time purchase or as a subscription. Many large news sites, such as the Washington Post and the New York Times, have moved to a business model where they provide a certain number of free content views, after which users are forced to pay to see content. Some news outlets, however, have moved to a subscription only version, and as such, Google has been penalizing them. This will no longer be the case.

While the policy change is mainly focused on larger publishers at this time, we believe this will eventually spread to other types of content creators who employ paywalls—be they text or video based. Which could be good news because the second change will likely drive some content creators to using paywalls.

No ad revenue for the little guy!

Earlier this year, Google decided to block ads on YouTube video channels with under 10,000 views. While they claimed that this move was to prevent content theft, an unintended result was to punish smaller, niche content creators, as well as advertisers who wanted to reach those audiences. Which, frankly, may be a good thing for content creators, considering YouTube cost per thousand (CPM) has been cut in half in the last five years.

It should be clear from these changes that it’s becoming easier to monetize content through a paywall than through advertising. Using a paywall, content creators can better decide what to charge for their content, giving them more control over their revenue. Additionally, they can gain access to customer analytics—who has watched a video, read a post, etc.—as well as contact subscribers and customers directly with premium content offers, discounts, and more.

Increase your revenue from day one

If you’re looking for ways to increase your revenue from your content, InPlayer is a versatile and flexible platform with all the tools you need for content monetization. Take the InPlayer tour to see how you can start making money from your content.

Does Google really want you to make money on content?

Google: Can’t work with it, can’t work around it. Recently the search giant has made two moves that both help and hurt content creators, making us scratch our collective head to wonder, “What do we need to do now?”

Penalty-free paywalls

The first change is actually good for content creators who want to make money from subscriptions to their content via paywall (i.e. anyone who uses InPlayer to generate revenue). Just last week, Google announced that it is loosening its rules on including paywalled news content in search results.

Before the change, Google would penalize any news site that asked viewers to pay for content, either as a one-time purchase or as a subscription. Many large news sites, such as the Washington Post and the New York Times, have moved to a business model where they provide a certain number of free content views, after which users are forced to pay to see content. Some news outlets, however, have moved to a subscription only version, and as such, Google has been penalizing them. This will no longer be the case.

While the policy change is mainly focused on larger publishers at this time, we believe this will eventually spread to other types of content creators who employ paywalls—be they text or video based. Which could be good news because the second change will likely drive some content creators to using paywalls.

No ad revenue for the little guy!

Earlier this year, Google decided to block ads on YouTube video channels with under 10,000 views. While they claimed that this move was to prevent content theft, an unintended result was to punish smaller, niche content creators, as well as advertisers who wanted to reach those audiences. Which, frankly, may be a good thing for content creators, considering YouTube cost per thousand (CPM) has been cut in half in the last five years.

It should be clear from these changes that it’s becoming easier to monetize content through a paywall than through advertising. Using a paywall, content creators can better decide what to charge for their content, giving them more control over their revenue. Additionally, they can gain access to customer analytics—who has watched a video, read a post, etc.—as well as contact subscribers and customers directly with premium content offers, discounts, and more.

Increase your revenue from day one

If you’re looking for ways to increase your revenue from your content, InPlayer is a versatile and flexible platform with all the tools you need for content monetization. Take the InPlayer tour to see how you can start making money from your content.

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