Creator Partnerships: what YouTube changes, and what it does not replace

What it is

In March 2026, YouTube renamed BrandConnect as YouTube Creator Partnerships: a space built into YouTube Studio for creators and into Google Ads for advertisers, where a brand can search for channels among more than 3 million creators in the Partner Program, with help from Google’s AI. France is among the countries where it is available. To date, the creator negotiates and signs directly with the brand, which pays them.

Who it is good news for

The Partner Program counts more than 3 million creators, and many small channels have no access to advertisers at all. For them, assignments offered in the dashboard are a real starting point. We say so to creators who ask us.

What the tool does not do

Our reading: a matching tool at scale will first attract standardised offers, designed for thousands of channels at once. Alone across the table from a brand, a creator negotiates without market benchmarks: prices, common practice, what is open to discussion.

There is also the question of how value is shared. YouTube keeps 45% of advertising revenue on long-form videos. Nothing today points to a commission on partnerships. Our view: the history of platforms calls for caution, because terms tend to be generous while a platform is still building the habit. An agent takes a commission too: it pays for the negotiation, the contract and the follow-up, not for the introduction alone.

Our recommendation

To creators: keep an eye on the tool, and do not negotiate there alone. To brands: use it to explore, then deal with someone who can commit the creator and is accountable for delivery. Representation is still a craft, practised person to person.