Speaking at CreatorFest 2026, YouTube’s Head of Creator Partnerships for the UK & Ireland, Rajarshi Lahiri, officially announced that creators in the UK will now be able to tag brand products and earn affiliate commissions directly through the platform.
YouTube has launched its highly anticipated YouTube Shopping Affiliate Programme across the UK market, opening up a major new revenue stream for the country's creator economy.
The announcement was delivered during YouTube’s session at CreatorFest 2026 titled Get Shopping with YouTube: The Future of YouTube Shopping. Lahiri revealed that British creators will now have access to tools that let them tag products from major brands directly within their long-form videos and YouTube Shorts.
Addressing an audience of creators, brand representatives, and agency heads, Lahiri outlined YouTube’s dual-track vision for e-commerce integration.
"We have two products," Lahiri explained during the session. "We have a product that lets creators launch their own products and sell their merchandise. And we also have a product that's coming up, which lets a creator tag a brand's offer or product and earn an affiliate commission."
While the merchandise feature is already live for creators looking to sell their own branded items, the affiliate commission tool has until now been limited to creators in selected overseas markets. Lahiri confirmed that the UK is next in line.
Joining Lahiri on stage were two top creators: Maddy Borge, Founder of travel brand Pastel (1.1 million subscribers), and Lifestyle Creator Tim Dessaint (1.6 million subscribers). Both panellists shared how organic product recommendations have driven their business models, noting that viewers actively seek out recommendations from trusted authorities.
Lahiri emphasised that many creators are already producing content that inherently fits e-commerce, whether they realise it or not.
"Your content might already be shoppable," Lahiri noted. "It's just YouTube shopping will be there to enable some of that, some of those conversations with your audience."
Back catalogue shelf-lives can now be extended
A major focal point of the session was the unique shelf-life of YouTube content compared to rival social media channels. Unlike ephemeral feeds, YouTube videos frequently accumulate views over months and years.
Lahiri highlighted that the upcoming affiliate tool will allow creators to retrospectively tag older uploads, unlocking new value from their existing libraries.
"So it just makes that back catalogue of your content even more valuable with the launch of YouTube Shopping," Lahiri explained.
Dessaint said that videos he published years ago continue to draw tens of thousands of views weekly, making them prime territory for affiliate links once the tools go live. Borge agreed that subtle, solution-oriented integration works far better than hard-selling, advising creators to focus on showing how a product works rather than pushing viewers to buy.
"I'm personally looking forward to the YouTube Shopping affiliate programme launching," Lahiri closed. "There are a lot of people here in the front row who are working very hard to bring it to you."
