In a blog post, YouTube explained that the 10,000 threshold provides enough information to "determine the validity of a channel" while ensuring "minimal impact on our aspiring creators." It encourages beginners to check out its Creator Academy for tips on how to produce original content and grow an audience. Those who had already been making money from ads despite not having collected 10,000 channel views will get to keep their earnings. After today, however, that source of income will be shut down.

Once you gain the followers needed, you can apply for the partner program to start earning all the advertising dollars from YouTube slapping commercials on your content. That is, of course, as long as you've passed the review and follow community guidelines.