YouTube Gives Creators The Ability to Dynamically Insert Brand Sponsored Segments In Videos
At its Made On YouTube event, YouTube announced over $100 billion in payouts to creators, artists, and media companies, alongside 30+ updates across shopping, brand deals, AI creation tools, podcasts, live streaming, and music.
One standout update is Dynamic Brand Segments, which allows creators to insert brand-sponsored segments into videos that can be swapped in and out rather than permanently embedded.
The feature is expected to be available for testing early next year, with a full rollout later in the year.
Why It Matters:
This approach mirrors how ads run on traditional TV (and podcasts), which is fitting as YouTube continues to reinvent television.
For creators, dynamic brand segments unlock ongoing monetization of existing videos. Instead of producing new videos for sponsorships , creators can cycle different brands through relevant videos, turning their catalog into continuous revenue streams. For example, a creator could update a holiday-focused video with new brand segments each year.
Brands benefit by featuring in already high-performing videos and adapting campaigns without commissioning entirely new content. Segments can be customized by region or messaging, offering more flexible and potentially more cost-effective partnership options, including performance-based deals.
Viewers also gain a better experience, seeing brand segments that are more relevant to the context in which they watch, rather than content that may feel outdated due to permanent brand integrations.
One potential downside though is that brand segments might feel less organic than content created with a brand in mind from the start. Even so, this feature adds welcome flexibility for creators and brands and aides in YouTube’s push to be more active in influencer marketing.
Want more creator economy news, trends, and insights? Sign up for my newsletter and follow me on LinkedIn, Threads, and Instagram.