YouTube will begin putting a watermark on YouTube Shorts to ensure that everyone knows where the videos originated from, even if they have been broadcast to other apps such as TikTok and Instagram.
TechCrunch originally reported the move, which comes after a support thread revealed plans to add a watermark to the downloaded content. If you haven’t seen the watermark yet, don’t worry — Google said it will take a few weeks to roll out on desktop and will be available on mobile “in the coming months.”
To be clear, YouTube isn’t saying people shouldn’t share content on other applications, but it does say it wants everyone to know where that content came from.
According to the support document, “If you’re a creator who downloads your shorts from YouTube Studio to distribute on other platforms, you’ll now notice a watermark added to your downloaded video.” “We’ve added a watermark to the Shorts you download so your viewers know the video you’re sharing across platforms is available on YouTube Shorts.” This will be available on PC in the coming weeks, and we intend to expand to mobile in the future months. “
However, YouTube is not the only site that adds a watermark to videos generated with its tools. TikTok has been doing something similar for years, which is why YouTube Shorts and Instagram are filled with films with the renowned TikTok logo somewhere on them. We’re also likely to see the YouTube logo appear more frequently in the future.
While this is most likely to affect people who rip off other people’s work and present it as their own, those who developed the films may need to consider using third-party apps in the future. Although many films are now recorded using tools incorporated into social networking programs, the only way to eliminate the watermark is to create videos elsewhere and upload them separately.
