YouTube is offering creators an olive branch

This is an excerpt from a story delivered exclusively to Business Insider Intelligence Digital Media Briefing subscribers. To receive the full story plus other insights each morning, click here.YouTube is looking to have 50% of all trending videos on the site come from its own creators, according to a letter addressing creators by CEO Susan Wojcicki, per TechCrunch.YouTube creators have recently expressed concern that their content was being collaterally demonetized amid the platform's clampdown on abusive content. As part of that same push, YouTube has prioritized safer, repurposed content from media companies in its trending section and recommendations.YouTube's push to prioritize brand-safe content makes sense, but it's likely come at the expense of the creators who helped make the site dominant. Many of YouTube's creators are stars, having formed massive, loyal followings: There are more than 20 YouTubers with 20 million subscribers, for instance. And the number of successful creators is growing. The video giant reported that the number of channels with over a million subscribers doubled in the last year.The ability to amass large fanbases has enabled some YouTubers to make a living off of the site: Creators who earn five to six figures rose 40%year-over-year (YoY) in 2018. As such, privileging repurposed content over user-generated content — and directly demonetizing it — annoyed some creators.YouTube's prioritization of “safer” content is understandable: The platform had a tumultous few months, which even saw a crop of brands pull spend due to brand safety concerns.But it needs to strike a balance going forward, as its creator community both drives engagement and fosters trust among fans — two appealing traits for advertisers.YouTube's letter is an olive branch to creators — the platform is increasingly facing competition from rivals who could lure creators away, with their massive audiences in tow.As rival platforms increase their presence in video formats that appeal to the creator community, YouTube is facing growing pressure to retain its homegrown stars. That means ensuring its platform is not only the best for creators to reach their fans, but the best to monetize content.Platforms like Twitch and Snapchat provide a large (and somewhat overlapping) potential fanbase for these creators. And Twitch offers gamers the opportunity to monetize — one of its most popular broadcasters Ninja makes an average of $100,000 per month from his subscribers.For its part, Snapchat is investing in unscripted originals, and even launched a creator sumit to court content makers last May. Along similar lines, Facebook has been putting in a sizeable effort to lure creators from all over the world to boost its yet-to-be-hugely-successful platform Facebook Watch.If these rival platforms start to chip away at YouTube's crop of stars, engagement could sag, and its ad revenue would likely follow behind.Interested in getting the full story？ Here are two ways to get access: 1. Sign up for the Digital Media Briefing to get it delivered to your inbox 6x a week. >> Get Started2. Subscribe to a Premium pass to Business Insider Intelligence and gain immediate access to the Digital Media Briefing, plus more than 250 other expertly researched reports. As an added bonus, you'll also gain access to all future reports and daily newsletters to ensure you stay ahead of the curve and benefit personally and professionally. >>Learn More Now