Is it possible that YouTube has figured out how to sell Shorts to advertisers? On a call with investors in parent Alphabet, executives indicated the monetization of YouTube Shorts is showing signs of improvement. That’s good news for creators (and Alphabet shareholders) who have seen advertisers pay far less for YouTube Shorts than longer videos, as we reported here.

Executives said the monetization rate of Shorts in the U.S. compared to in-stream viewing (meaning ads that run before or during longer-videos) has more than doubled in the last 12 months, including a 10 point sequential improvement in the first quarter alone.

Of course, that kind of growth is far from proof that Shorts is becoming the moneymaker YouTube’s long-form business is. But Philipp Schindler, Google’s chief business officer, cast the results as proof advertisers believe in the product.

“Advertisers only spend with us when they see a positive [return on investment], so you can assume this wouldn’t be happening if it didn’t work for advertisers in the short term and also in the long term,” he said of Shorts.

Schindler called Shorts a “long-term bet” for the business. “It has really helped us respond to both creator and viewer demand for short-form video.” A potential U.S. ban or sale of Shorts rival TikTok was not mentioned on the call, but Shorts could benefit if TikTok were to disappear in the country.

Overall, YouTube’s revenue rose about 21% to nearly $8.1 billion year-over-year during the first quarter.

Schindler also talked up YouTube’s Partner Program, its long-running arrangement to pay video creators a portion of the ads sold on their videos. And he pointed to growth in viewers watching YouTube on their smart TVs. (Read more about YouTube TV’s rise here.)

“Viewers are watching YouTube because they expect to access everything in one place across screens and formats, their favorite creators, live sports, breaking news, educational content, movies, music and more,” Schindler said. “Advertisers continue to lean in to find audiences they can’t find elsewhere.”

Here’s what else is going on…

The Tick-Tock on TikTok

ByteDance is internally exploring scenarios for selling a majority stake in TikTok’s U.S. business, potentially to a non-tech company and without TikTok’s powerful algorithm, my colleagues Erin, Qianer and Juro reported on Thursday. Staffers involved in the discussions include the corporate strategy team led by Zhao Pengyuan. In one scenario discussed, ByteDance could sell more than 50% of TikTok U.S. but keep a minority stake. A ByteDance spokesperson denied the report, and later Reuters reported that ByteDance executives would prefer to shut TikTok down in the country than find a buyer.

Deals & Debuts

See The Information’s Creator Economy Database for an exclusive list of private companies and their investors.

Snap’s revenue jumped 21% in the first quarter to $1.19 billion, a sharp improvement in the company’s growth rate, which had stalled last year. Snap forecast growth between 15% and 18% in the second quarter. The company also gave an update on its subscription offering, Snapchat+, which grew to more than 9 million paying customers, up from 7 million in December.

Carv, a blockchain protocol helping gamers and companies control and earn money from their data, raised $10 million in Series A funding led by Tribe Capital and IOSG Ventures.

Reddit updated its app to make it easier to find comments, including making them load faster.

Billion Dollar Boy, an influencer marketing company, announced a membership program for creators that will include access to physical office space at its London headquarters, educational resources and events. It hasn’t yet announced pricing. Other firms such as Whalar are also offering physical space for creators.

Open Sauce, an event bringing together 150 science and tech creators and 500 exhibitors showing new tech and science experiments, will happen for the second time in San Francisco June 14-16.

Creator Corner

Emma Chamberlain’s coffee company Chamberlain Coffee is partnering with Kendall Jenner’s tequila brand 818 Tequila on an espresso martini kit.

Carla Rockmore, a fashion creator and designer with more than 1 million TikTok followers, launched a limited-edition summer clothing collection, which includes a dress, shirt and pants, priced between $95 and $149.

People on the Move

Mark Rappaport is the new chief commercial officer of Congo Brands, a company that has launched consumer goods with creators including Logan Paul and KSI’s Prime energy drink. Previously, Rappaport was chief commercial officer and executive vice president of Red Bull North America. (Congo Brands was one of The Information's Top 50 Most Promising Startups last year.)

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