YouTube Shorts to favour original content.
These videos won’t be taken down. They just won’t reach viewers as often. Minor technical edits or template-based changes made only to alter a video won’t qualify.
In a post from the TeamYouTube account, the company said channels that mainly aggregate or re-upload other creators’ videos without significant changes will likely see less distribution in the Shorts feed. YouTube is changing how Shorts get recommended, and accounts that simply repost other people’s videos are set to lose out. The company is updating its Shorts recommendation algorithm to push original content higher and reduce the reach of videos re-uploaded from other creators without anything new added. The change mostly targets clipper accounts, channels that lift a funny moment from a livestream or a few seconds from a popular creator’s video and repost it with little or no change. Borrowing clips is still allowed, as long as the uploader brings something of their own. YouTube listed original commentary, unique edits and storytelling as ways to add value. The post specifically refers to other creators’ videos, which suggests long-form YouTubers cutting Shorts from their own uploads should be safe. YouTube hasn’t addressed that case directly, though. The update comes as Shorts continues to draw pushback from users. YouTube already lets viewers set their daily Shorts limit to zero, and has been testing opening the app straight into the Shorts feed for some users. A feed with fewer recycled clips gives the company a better case for that push. You use AI every day. Now get your AI Quotient. Take the AIQ test.
It also hasn’t said whether Shorts made with Reimagine, its AI remix tool that rolled out in March and lets users rework other channels’ videos, will count as original. YouTube says its systems weigh billions of signals, including watch history, topic interests and engagement, to decide what shows up in a viewer’s feed. There is no rollout date, but the change appears to be live already.