• by Colin Kirkland , February 20, 2023

TikTok is launching the beta version of its updated creator fund in the U.S. in a move to attract more creators to its platform. The company hopes the Creativity Program will generate higher revenue and unlock new opportunities for creators.

TikTok's original creator fund launched in 2020 and consisted of a three-year commitment to $1 billion allocated to creators for popular video uploads. Creators have complained about their payouts being meager, with most earning no more than a few dollars per video.

A TikTok spokesperson told TechCrunch that the platform has reworked the formula to offer a higher average gross revenue for qualified video views with the new program.

To earn money from the new fund, creators must now upload videos longer than one minute -- a move likely tied to the company's competition with long-form video platform YouTube.

TikTok has not yet hinted at a specific amount being allocated for the program, or how many followers or views the creators will need in order to be eligible to be considered, although based on a report last week by The Information, the minimum number will likely be 100,000.

The platform has announced an age restriction of 18 years of age, and the requirement for the creator to have an account in good standing. Eligible creators will have access to an updated dashboard with additional insights into estimated revenue and video performance metrics.

The Creativity Program, which has been available in beta mode for the past few months in France and Brazil, is now available to select U.S. creators on an invitation-only basis, but will open up to all eligible creators soon, the company says.