YouTube now lets you pay $4.99 per month to support your favorite creators

Most YouTube creators make a profit through ad revenue, but they'll now have Channel Memberships and Merchandise features to bolster their income—if they pass specific subscriber thresholds.

YouTube knows that many creators haven't been happy with the company's recent content policies changes (as well as the ever-confusing nature of YouTube's algorithms) because it has made it harder for creators large and small to make money from advertisements.

A YouTube representative told Ars in an email that creators will keep 70 percent of the profits from Channel Memberships and merchandise sales while YouTube will get the remaining 30 percent.