Why TikTok Closed Its $1 Billion Creator Fund and Replaced It With Creativity Program

TikTok the widely popular social media platform is used by creators to make short videos and earn millions based on posts and ad posts. Surprisingly, it announced that it is ending its $1 billion Creator Fund and replacing it with The Creativity Program to support and encourage creators, per CNBC. TikTok launched its Creator Fund with $200 million, and in 2020, it accumulated a whopping amount and stopped at $1 billion due to the criticism and extremely low payouts. Keeping in mind the audience as well as the creator's career, the platform launched a new program through which influencers can earn 20 times more than the Creator Fund. Creators in the U.S., UK, Germany, and France are no longer able to access the Creator Fund after December 16, 2023, and they can sign up for the new Creativity Program which is still in the Beta phase.

Why did TikTok discontinue the Creator Fund?

The main reason behind terminating the creator's fund was primarily because of the negative feedback of the creators as they got really low payments despite entertaining the audiences. Many renowned creators shared their followers' reach versus how much they were paid under the Creator Fund and the details were pretty shocking. Let's have a look at some of the cases. 

Hank Green, a popular TikToker with an enormous following of 8 million and 1.64 million subscribers, made a video on YouTube which was titled "So TickTok sucks" and revealed that for 1,000 views, he just received 2.5 cents which is nothing. This video reached 1 million views and encouraged other creators to reveal and share their earnings, too. Another creator, Mr. Beast with 88.9 million followers revealed he made $14,910 in 10 months whereas SuperSaf with 652.5K followers made an income of $122-$137 in 10 months. The creators were disappointed as they made more money through their YouTube videos. Green explained and revealed that TikTok paid the same amount every time even if the app earned more, but YouTube paid a certain percentage of its ad money income. Mr. Beast said he earned $82 million through his YouTube videos. 

Understanding the TikTok Creator Fund replacement

To keep the audience engaged and not let their creators shift to another platform, TikTok launched its Creativity Program for an enriching experience. TikTok's official website reported that the program is still in the beta phase but the creators can sign up based on some eligibility. The basic requirement is that the user must be over 18 years old with a minimum of 10,000 followers and 100,000 video views and these statistics must be at least 30 days old. After launching the program, TikTok revealed that this is a value addition to the platform as it will allow creators to earn 20 times more than they earned with the Creator Fund. Creators with enormous followings can earn money through several approaches including brand partnerships, sponsored posts, and ads, and can also grow by starting podcasts, channels, or different series. 

It has been seen that TikTok has a gigantic user base following and enjoying the content. Users spend 50% of their time on short video content of one minute or more and this allows the creator to create long videos which can increase their following five times. The program works in a way where TikTok creators can earn based on their video views. Creators can sign up for the program if they are eligible by going to the app, and selecting the Creator Tools option, and then selecting Creativity Program Beta.