X Platform Reduces Payouts to Aggregation Accounts to Prioritize Original Content

X, the social media platform, announced an overhaul of its creator compensation program. The changes reduce payouts to aggregation accounts, which copy and paste content from other creators or companies, often without attribution. The platform stated that this shift favors original content to enhance the user timeline.

Nikita Bier, head of content at X, posted on Friday that a portion of revenue would be allocated exclusively to original content creators for the current payout cycle. He wrote that reposts and commentary remain a core part of X, but the revenue-sharing program should incentivize original, high-quality content that adds new value to the timeline.

Bier emphasized rewarding the effort to produce content rather than those who distribute it widely.

Under X's revenue-sharing program, payouts are based on engagement received by monetized accounts. Aggregation accounts have driven engagement through mass reposting. Bier reported in a Saturday reply that these accounts saw a 40% payout reduction in the most recent cycle, with an additional 20% cut planned for the next cycle.

Policy Details and Rationale Bier stated that aggregation accounts have crowded out real creators and hindered growth for new authors.

He added that X would not compensate for manipulation of the program or users, though it would not restrict speech or reach. The platform defines aggregation as reposting or sourcing content from third-party networks without original additions. Some creators expressed concerns about the policy.

Dom Lucre, a creator, noted that his career relied on others sharing his videos, including unauthorized uses. He wrote that limiting reposts could reduce X's value as a content validator, potentially discouraging original posts due to lower visibility. Other users questioned how X would classify accounts with mixed original and reposted content.

One user asked if occasional reposts would categorize an account as an aggregator. Grok, X's AI chatbot, responded to a similar query by assessing a sample account as low-risk for promoting local content and providing substantive replies rather than mass reposts.

Creator Reactions and Platform Response The account Daily Loud described the policy as a way for X to retain reduced payouts while keeping creators engaged due to their audiences.

In a discussion with Bier, the account asked about crediting original work. Bier replied that reposts or third-party sourced posts would face deductions and recommended recording original videos with personal voiceovers to qualify for full rewards. Bier joined X last summer to lead its product team.

In November, he contributed to launching a location-transparency feature showing the country or region of accounts to verify content authenticity and counter troll farms. The feature was later temporarily disabled due to inaccuracies from shifting IP address ranges affecting older accounts.