Elon Musk’s X Cracks Down on Stolen Viral Videos; Know How He Will Protect Original Creators
Washington: Elon Musk-owned social media platform X has announced a major policy update aimed at limiting profits earned through reposted viral videos and copied content. According to The Financial Express, the move is designed to support original creators and reduce the growing issue of “copycat” accounts that repost trending content for monetisation.
The platform’s latest decision comes as X continues to expand its creator revenue-sharing programme, which allows eligible users to earn money based on engagement and impressions generated through their posts.
X Targets Reuploaded Content
As reported by The Financial Express, X’s Head of Product Nikita Bier stated that the company identified several large accounts that were “programmatically reuploading” videos and clips from smaller creators in order to exploit the monetisation system.
To address the issue, X will now detect copied uploads and redirect the majority of impressions and monetisation benefits to the original creator instead of repost accounts. The platform said the change is intended to reward users who create original content rather than those who simply repost trending material.
Nikita Bier explained in a post on X that the company had identified multiple accounts attempting to bypass proper crediting while benefiting from the revenue-sharing programme.
Commentary And Reactions Will Still Be Allowed
Despite tightening rules around reposted videos, X clarified that users can still share commentary, reactions, and discussions related to viral content. According to The Financial Express, the platform encouraged creators to use the “Share Video” and “Quote” features instead of downloading and reuploading videos separately.
Bier also noted that users who add meaningful commentary or analysis through quote posts may continue to receive a portion of impressions. However, the original upload will receive the largest share of visibility and monetisation benefits.
Some users reportedly highlighted technical issues with the Share Video feature, saying videos sometimes appear as links when posts exceed the platform’s character limit. Bier acknowledged the issue and said the bug would be fixed soon.
Wider Push Against Engagement Farming
The latest update is part of X’s broader effort to discourage engagement farming, clickbait, and repost-driven monetisation. Earlier this year, the platform had already reduced payouts for accounts accused of flooding timelines with recycled news and low-quality posts.
According to reports by TechCrunch and The Guardian, X has been experimenting with systems that identify original creators and prioritise authentic content over aggregation pages.
The Financial Express reported that the new policy reflects a wider trend among social media companies trying to ensure that original creators benefit more directly from the content they produce.
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