YouTube is offering millions of dollars to popular channels for exclusivity. The company has yet to finalize any deals with creators. The move is an effort to halt Netflix’s pursuit of YouTube’s biggest stars. Creators who sign deals with Netflix will be less likely to be featured in YouTube’s marketing campaigns, and they will also be excluded from collecting a share of proceeds from some major brand campaigns.

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Business

YouTube Offers Creators Millions to Not Work With Netflix

YouTube will pay creators to post their videos to YouTube before any other service. If creators post to YouTube and Netflix at the same time, they will face consequences.

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Neal Mohan, chief executive officer of YouTube.

Photographer: David Paul Morris/Bloomberg

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By Lucas Shaw

August 19, 2026 at 9:15 PM UTC

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YouTube is offering millions of dollars to popular channels if they upload their videos to the site exclusively for a certain period of time, in an effort to halt Netflix Inc.’s pursuit of its biggest stars, according to people familiar with the conversations.

The payment would come in a couple of different forms. YouTube has discussed directly financing some programs, and it has also offered to allot a portion of major brand deals to creators. Though YouTube hasn’t finalized deals with any creators, it is close an agreement with several partners, said the people, who declined to be identified because the negotiations are sensitive and ongoing.