I'm not sure that they do know what they are doing. I think YouTube is on the skids as a result of demonetising political sites. FANG stocks are dropping as well, so it may be that the stock market is in agreement.
btw - I posted the link rather than the image to save clogging the thread with large images. I consider the members who may be viewing the forum on mobile phones.
It actually has been happening for long by now. Youtube Red is a kind of new "Netflix", if you subscribe you will have access to their original series and movies, as well as being able to reproduce their videos while your phone is out of the youtube, with no announcements, and so.
To a Youtube partner, it doesn't mean your channel getting demonetize. You can continue being a partner even if you have not the Youtube Red service, and your videos are still going to be monetized.
The recent policies on the youtube changed how your videos get monetized:
- Now you will need 1000 subscribers.
- And more than 4 hours of total time in views.
That's all.
I don't think they are going to ask for all the creators to subscribe into a Red account, for, as it has been said, the youtube partners creators are making content and youtube earn a lot with their efforts. The only different thing I've recently seen is about subscribing into your channel: the ones with youtube red can ask their own subscribers to pay something, as in Patreon.
Also, your videos have different monetization if the views are coming from a normal user or a "Red" one. The second ones gives you more money from each view.