Ashwini Vaishnaw Calls for Fair Revenue Sharing for Creators, Stresses Need for Original Content

Fairly share revenue must be given to the wide range of creators who bring crores of users to the social media platforms and also urged that the social media companies should take the responsibility of the content being published, said Union minister Ashwini Vaishnaw. He, was speaking at the Digital News Publishers Association (DNPA) Conclave 2026. Union IT Minister emphasized that original work and intellectual property form the backbone of societal progress.

Vaishnaw said, "Social media platforms must also legally share revenue with the people who are creating the content, whether it is news, the conventional media, the creators sitting in far-flung areas, influencers, the professors and researchers who are disseminating their work using the platforms." This comes amid a rapid expansion of India's creator economy which is projected to generate $4,403.5 million in revenue by 2030. According to a report by Boston Consulting Group (BCG), the country now has more than 2 million monetised content creators.

There has also been a growing wave of Indian influencers who have started their own businesses since establishing a social media presence. At the conclave, the minister urged platforms to revise their revenue-sharing policies, asserting that content creators deserve a fair share of the revenue. Vaishnaw also asserted that social media companies should take greater accountability for the content published on their platforms, just as hotels are held accountable for the guest staying on their properties. 

"Like a person who comes to a hotel is verified by hotel managers, so that the person doesn't do something illegal... that same responsibility platforms must take. I will request that platforms must wake up... take responsibility for the content that is hosted by them. The online safety of children, the online safety of all citizens, is the responsibility of the platforms."

Minister warned the citizens of growing threat caused by deepfakes and misinformation circulating on several social media platforms. Vaishnaw highlighted that misinformation and deepfakes destroy the fundamentals of societal values, which need to be protected at any cost.  Vaishnaw claimed, "Online safety – safety from the authenticity of news content, the safety of our children, protection against obscenity, protection against synthetically generated fake content – all those items really need a very decisive step today, because they are basically destroying the fundamental tenet of our society."

Vaishnaw is not the first person to warn against deepfakes. Earlier, during the India AI Impact Summit, Prime Minister Narendra Modi and the French President, Emmanuel Macron, also warned of the threat caused by deepfakes.