Amazon is launching its own YouTube competitor

After years of sitting at the top of the video-sharing market virtually unopposed, YouTube is finally starting to see some serious competition, first by Facebook, then surprisingly by Snapchat, and now even Amazon is joining the battle. Having already proven that it can challenge Netflix in the premium video-streaming market, Amazon has set it sights on YouTube and is planning to launch its own video-sharing service called Amazon Video Direct.

Amazon is launching a “self-service” program for video creators called Amazon Video Direct. In a direct move against YouTube, the program will let creators earn money from royalties and advertising for videos they upload, based on minutes streamed. While Amazon told Bloomberg the platform was meant for “professional” creators, the only requirements are that a video be in HD format and include closed captioning. This is similar to the process Amazon uses for Kindle Direct Publishing, which lets authors self-publish e-books directly to Amazon. Video creators will be able to choose how their content is viewable on the service, allowing people to stream, download, rent, or buy their videos, depending on preference. If they would like to bundle multiple videos together or prefer to present their videos in a TV-like “season” format, selling as a subscription add-on is possible.