Facebook will let creators make money on videos with licensed music

Facebook said Monday it's created a new music revenue sharing program that will allow creators to make money on videos that use licensed music.

Why it matters: The move will help Facebook and its parent company Meta better compete with TikTok for creators' time and attention. Previously, creators couldn't monetize videos with licensed music on Meta.

How it works: Moving forward, whenever a creator uses licensed music in Facebook videos 60 seconds or longer, they are eligible to earn money on certain videos through in-stream ads, Facebook said.

• Creators are eligible to receive 20% of the revenue on all eligible videos. A share of revenue will be sent back to music rights holders, and another portion will go to Meta. 
• Reels, even ones that are more than 60 seconds long, are not eligible for this program at the time, the company said.
• Creators will be provided with a list of which songs are eligible for monetization through a library.

The big picture: The move comes as Meta is pushing aggressively to spin Facebook into a more TikTok-like experience that centers around creators and content discovery.

• Last week Meta announced major changes to the Facebook app that will transform its experience into a more TikTok-like selection of algorithmically chosen videos.

What's next: The feature will start rolling out today globally to eligible creators. Content that's eligible can be monetized at first-only with ads delivered in the U.S., but will expand globally in coming months.