The Bhutanese Leading the way.
A total of 155 content creators has been supported in the fiscal years 2024-2025 and 2025-2026 with a Nu 50 mn Economic Stimulus Program (ESP) fund.
The Department of Media, Creative Industry, and Intellectual Property (DoMCIIP) under the Ministry of Industry Commerce and Employment (MoICE) says that has created 1,137 employment opportunities and online monetization revenue of USD 69,576 or Nu 6.39 million.
In the 2024-2025, the program with Nu 30 million (mn) had directly supported 92 content creators, which DoMCIIP says turn led to the creation of about 852 employment opportunities.
A total of 63 digital content creators from July 2025 to date, have been supported directly with Nu 20 mn which DoMCIIP says contributed to the creation of about 285 employment opportunities so far.
The funds were allocated under the digital content creation field. This is part of the larger Nu 530 mn ESP fund for the Creative Industry (of which Nu 190 mn is for two cinema halls).
The Nu 50 mn amount has been disbursed and is being implemented across six different categories including music production, music video, vlogs, talk shows and podcasts, dance and choreography, and animation and digital illustration.
The total revenue generation is reported to be direct earnings from the primary platform that the creators use.
Between January to October 2025, the supported channels generated about USD 45,520.66 (BTN 3.9m) in the period of nine months, specifically from YouTube monetization.
From August to December 2024 around USD 24,056 was monetized.
DoMCIIP said that these are new value creations and they are expected to grow in value over time, thereby creating new income streams in the country.
The department also said that it is also worthwhile to mention that digital content enhances visibility of Bhutan, its culture, and music to the global world.
In order to avail support from the department, content creators must meet certain criteria.
Tempa Tshering, the Chief Intellectual Property Officer said, “With the criteria duly established, we have prioritized support for artists and creators who are seriously pursuing music and related audio-visual production as a profession and who depend on their creativity as a source of livelihood. For digital content creators, we have adopted a minimum benchmark of 10,000+ subscribers for vloggers and 15,000+ subscribers for YouTubers, as these thresholds enable them to activate platform monetization features and generate regular income from their content.”
The department said that their intention is to provide these creators with a strategic push which will help elevate them to a higher professional level. These will enable them to earn a substantial income that can serve as motivation and proof of viability for other aspiring artists and content creators.
However, for established artists and singers, there is no applied platform-based subscription criteria. Instead, eligibility is determined by creative output and originality, with a requirement of at least five self-composed songs available on Spotify or similar recognized streaming platforms.
“While we remain committed to supporting beginners and passionate emerging talents, the number of such applicants is very large, and it is not financially feasible to extend funding to all within the limited budget allocated for the two-year implementation period,” says Tempa.
“As such, the current criteria are designed to ensure that available resources are directed toward candidates with the highest potential for sustainability, professional growth, and measurable impact,” he added.
Blending cultural change and Bhutanese values
Owing to concerns over cultural erosion and the need to instil “Bhutanese values” in different curated content, the department states that it embraces changing cultural dynamics and the importance of blending Bhutanese cultural elements to give a significant edge.
During the project selection stage, the office evaluates through criteria that assess originality, cultural sensitivity, global potential and responsible representation, while allowing creators full freedom in storytelling style, format and platform strategy.
He said, “DoMCIIP believes that as per the Article 4.2 of the Constitution of Bhutan, it defines culture as, not a static, ancient relic but as an evolving, dynamic force, fostering sustainable traditional values in a modern context. Thus, our supported digital contents largely include new, blended, fused and contemporary creative products but with visible Bhutanese essence, which gives us the comparative advantage.”
“However, DoMCIIP ensures alignment with Bhutanese values by signing an agreement with each beneficiary rather than prescriptive content control, recognizing that creative freedom is essential for relevance and success on digital platforms,” he added.
DoMCIIP emphasizes more on capacity building and quality content over censorship by organizing briefing sessions on knowing one’s boundary in the content, digital ethics and audience engagement after signing the agreement with respective applicants. This enables creators to uphold Bhutanese values and express them organically in contemporary and globally appealing formats.
Further, even after the production, the applicants are required to submit a draft of the content for review by the office before uploading it.
“This is mainly to screen out any harmful or unlawful material such as hate speech, misinformation or serious cultural misrepresentation, rather than influencing artistic choices or creative direction. So far, we are fortunate to have not seen such a case.”
Finally, the Department maintains continuous dialogue with creators to adapt value frameworks to evolving digital trends, ensuring that tradition and innovation coexist.
The Way Forward
Tempa said that beyond funding support, the 2026 roadmap places strong emphasis on strengthening creators’ capacity to protect and manage their intellectual property rights. More than AI-generated content, a bigger issue of copyright over artists’ work remains persistent.
“Even without considering AI-generated content, there remains a substantial need to educate artists and content creators on copyright and related rights that subsist in their works. These rights constitute a bundle of interests involving multiple stakeholders, including composers, performers, producers and publishers, each with differing legal and commercial stakes,” says Chief Tempa.
“A key priority is to address the widespread absence of clear and enforceable contractual arrangements, which often leads to disputes and loss of income for creators. In parallel, the Department aims to establish robust mechanisms to prevent revenue leakages through improved royalty collection systems and effective licensing frameworks for public performances, broadcasting and digital use,” he added.
“With regard to AI-generated content, the roadmap recognizes the emerging legal and policy challenges surrounding ownership and protection. There is a need to introduce appropriate legal provisions to clarify how rights should be treated when works are created using artificial intelligence.”
The department said that several countries are already witnessing cases where AI-generated outputs are being submitted for copyright protection, and Bhutan intends to closely monitor developments in these jurisdictions and adapt relevant good practices in a context-appropriate manner.
At present, some jurisdictions are exploring the possibility of protecting the human creative input involved in AI-assisted works, such as the prompts, commands, or creative arrangements used to generate musical compositions and songs. These evolving approaches will inform future policy and legislative reforms to ensure that Bhutanese creators remain adequately protected in the age of AI.
The ESP fund for the creative industry is an initiative to refuel Bhutan’s artistic and creative sectors. The fund is distributed across different creative areas to support artists, creators, and enthusiasts.
Separate from the digital content creators, the ESP fund, as per the department has enabled the overall creative industry to create about 1,398 employment opportunities in film making, theatre, publications, creative events and programs etc.
They said it also supported various capacity building programs such as the vocal training, creative writing workshop and music crash course.
