Issue link: https://maltatoday.uberflip.com/i/1091956
maltatoday | WEDNESDAY • 13 MARCH 2019 3 NEWS PAUL COCKS MALTESE YouTubers will start getting paid for their online video content as from tomor- row when the company plans to launch its YouTube Partnership Programme for Malta. The decision will be wel- comed by YouTubers, who have been clamouring for a partnership programme to en- able them to monetise their ar- tistic work. In September 2017, Fabian Borg launched a petition to put pressure on Google to add Malta to its YPP. He set up a YouTube Malta official page on Facebook and launched an online petition – ironically on Google's own change.org – entitled 'Google include Malta in YouTube Partner Program'. Signatories included Prime Minister Joseph Muscat, who was actually the ninth person to sign the petition, and who immediately took to Twitter to advise his online followers to do the same. Last year, YouTube an- nounced the launch of a coun- try specific version and local domain for Malta, making it easier for users to discover lo- cal content. The launch of the local ver- sion was also a prerequisite for local creators being able to monetise their work. "We have heard loud and clear the requests from our lo- cal community in Malta and we hope that with a dedicated do- main and the upcoming open- ing up of the YouTube Partner- ship Programme (YPP)… we will help pave the way for the work of more Maltese creators, artists and musicians to shine on the world most vibrant vid- eo community," YouTube had said in a statement back in June last year. That moment has now ar- rived. Parliamentary Secretary for Digital Innovation Silvio Schembri said he was delighted to announce that the YouTube Partnership Programme will be available in Malta as of tomor- row. "Maltese will now be paid for their artistic work uploaded on YouTube like any other Euro- pean. Another step towards of- fering further opportunities in the tech industry," Schembri said in a tweet. In a subsequent statement, Schembri's secretariat said those that create online ma- terial will now have access to more tools and resources in or- der to maximise the use of their content on YouTube. "The government recognises the efforts made by Google in order for YouTube to have a specific version for Malta, the same as is happening in anoth- er 90 states… This means an end to the discrimination faced by Maltese YouTube users - it is now going to be easier for the talent and content produc- ers to be reached and remuner- ated on a national scale," the secretariat said. In a statement, Nationalist MEP Francis Zammit Dimech said that a year after he had promised YouTubers in Malta that he will work for them to get paid, this was becoming a reality. "Maltese YouTubers will fi- nally be paid for content they generate and share online," Zammit Dimech said, adding that he remained committed to working in favour of Maltese artists and content creators. Zammit Dimech said that after meeting with YouTube last year, he had held further meetings with the company in February, where he was as- sured that "legal challenges were being overcome to launch the monetisation programme within few months". He thanked Google for "tak- ing the right steps" to unlock the YouTube partnership pro- gramme after the successful launch of the local version of YouTube. "These are both important steps making local content on- line more easily accessible for users thus further promoting content of local creators in- cluding several artists. He said this was also crucial to support young budding artists," he said. Last year, Zammit Dimech organised a training session for the Maltese YouTube com- munity and invited YouTube experts to share their exper- tise with various Maltese and Gozitan content creators to get to know more on how to strengthen their voice online through a number of work- shops targeting different levels of expertise. The government said it would be organising an activity for YouTube users to provide fur- ther information on the pro- gramme, in order to make it possible for Maltese artists to exploit and make the best use of the tools provided by the programme. Maltese YouTubers to finally get paid for online content DAVID HUDSON TOURISTS were evacuated from the Qawra Palace Hotel on Tuesday after a fire broke out inside the Spa facility. Nobody was injured but 25, mostly elderly guests, had to be treated for smoke inhala- tion. The fire started at around 1pm and seven fire engines were dispatched to the area, a popular tourist zone. Medical personnel from Mater Dei Hospital set up an emergency treatment area outside the hotel. Michael Spiteri, the chair- man of the Emergency Unit told MaltaToday that despite the evacuation, none of the guests needed to be taken to hospital for treatment. "A total of 25 patients were treated on site, suffering very minor injuries since they in- haled some smoke, but none of them were hospitalised," he said. As per protocol, Spiteri said that two ambulances, two rapid response units and a major incidence support unit went on site after the emergency control room was alerted to the fire. The director of the Civil Protection Department Emanuel Psaila said a hotel fire was always a "red alert". "The first thing the CPD did was to start an evacuation. The sauna was where the fire started but the cause is not yet known," he explained. Evacuees were sent to the nearby Tal-Kaptan restau- rant in the vicinity of the ho- tel until the CPD put out the fire and secured the hotel. An evacuee described pro- ceedings as he was escorted out of the hotel "as good as gold". Accompanied by his wife he said that members of the emergency medical unit helped him down the stairs since he has a minor disabil- ity. "We heard the doors to our room first - bang, bang, bang - and we were told to exit the building. We had to use the emergency staircase," he said, describing the proceed- ings as smooth. He thanked the members of the CPD and the medical unit as he was ushered to the restaurant. Tourists evacuated after spa fire at Qawra Palace Hotel First responders treated tourists on site at a medical station set up outside the hotel (Photo: James Bianchi/MediaToday)