YouTube has introduced its Shopping affiliate program in India, enabling creators to tag products from e-commerce platforms Flipkart and Myntra directly within their videos, shorts, and livestreams. This new feature allows viewers to make purchases directly, streamlining the shopping experience and expanding revenue opportunities for content creators.

To participate, creators must be members of the YouTube Partner Program with a minimum of 10,000 subscribers, and their content must not be restricted to kids-only. Initially, creators will receive the full commission on sales, though YouTube plans to take a percentage of this revenue in the future. Commissions will be based on the total purchase price plus applicable taxes, excluding delivery fees.

Pic: Travis Katz, General Manager and Vice President, Shopping

Travis Katz, General Manager and Vice President of Shopping at YouTube, highlighted that the platform currently hosts over 350 million shopping-related videos globally, with 250,000 creators enrolled in YouTube Shopping. In 2023, shopping-related content generated over 30 billion hours of watch time, marking a 25 percent year-over-year growth.

Available across mobile, web, and Connected TVs, the program will also incorporate QR codes to facilitate mobile purchases on TVs. Viewership on YouTube’s Connected TV platform in India has quadrupled in the past three years.

According to Ajay Vidyasagar, YouTube’s APAC Regional Director, India has over 110,000 channels with more than 100,000 subscribers. Research indicates that 65 percent of Indian consumers trust YouTube creators more than traditional celebrities for purchase recommendations, with trust levels reaching 84 percent in non-metro areas.

The shopping feature adds to YouTube’s extensive monetization options, including ad revenue, Premium Revenue Service, Brand Connect, channel memberships, Super Thanks, Super Chat, and Super Stickers. Other markets have already seen success with the program—one US beauty creator reported a 70 percent increase in earnings within three months, while a Korean fashion creator generated over 20,000 product clicks in just one month.

YouTube plans to further broaden its affiliate partnerships beyond Flipkart and Myntra, creating additional monetization pathways for creators. Alongside the new affiliate program, creators can still sell their own merchandise through their direct-to-consumer channels.