I want to talk a bit
about the notion that YouTube is demonetizing videos on their platform.
When I started this
project, a few days ago, what came to mind most was, why?
I really didn't have
any idea how deep the rabbit hole would be. I searched the investors of Patreon
and the Investors of Google (Al Gore?) and the investors of YouTube.
In actuality,
YouTube was taken over by Google in 2006. I didn't join YouTube till 2009, but
I had watched some of the videos. The platform was truly archaic compared to
what we have now, and certainly the ads were not flying all over the place back
then.
I still believe that
everyone in this venture YouTube, Google (Alphabet), PayPal and Patreon are in
the same pocket when it comes to their investors. So it would stand to reason
they have some complimentary goals as well as major support for and from one
another.
Angel Investors are
particularly interesting as they can have or gain full reign of your business
because they are very, very wealthy and are investing their own cash and/or
assets. Looking at the investors of these companies, Angels are all over the
place.
YouTube Grew so
fast, Google had to get a piece of the action and within little over 2 years, Google bought YouTube!
Since Google was and is the ad giant, NBC, was moved into the host of other
advertisers and was no longer the main source of advertising for YouTube.
But now,
Google/YouTube is in panic mode with advertisers pulling out left and right.
They are afraid that the current climate around "fake news", hate
speech, terrorism, etc. may be broadcasted via YouTube with their ads attached.
They don't want it.
Here's a list of
some of the biggest advertisers who have stopped their spending with Google and
YouTube.
"Both ATandT and Verizon may have an ulterior motive to make YouTube look like an untrustworthy spot for marketers because both companies are trying to sell more digital ads in their own networks." http://www.foxbusiness.com/features/2017/03/22/googles-youtube-losing-major-advertisers-upset-with-videos.html
As a result,
Google/YouTube has come down hard on all Creators and in some ways
indiscriminately though they claim to be manually reviewing videos in addition
to adjusting their algorithms.
YouTube is a big
part of Google revenues but when you compare it to the other options Google has
as a search engine, it's primary role, and with competition coming in from
other Video sites, it's possible that Google may simply go on this bumpy ride
for a while and settle with being somewhere not so close to the top when it
comes to a video platform.
It is competing with
75 others and has had its hayday. Bringing in YouTube Red, and streaming TV
programs may keep hope alive for YouTube but the regular content creators with
smaller pockets will have to be a bit more creative or may get squeezed out altogether.
YouTube had, in the
past a couple of options for YouTube Creators to get financial support for
their videos. This was happening before they actually went all the way with
monetizing videos.
They had "Fan
Funding" Which they discontinued Feb. 28, 2017,
"allows users to make one-time donations to their favorite channels and content creators." https://grin.co/overview-youtube-fan-funding/
They went on to offer "SuperChat," which works particularly well for live streamers. "here a fan can pay for their comment to be at the top of the list of comments and the Streamer would reap the rewards." Not too sure how well that will work out over the long haul.
They also had
YouTube Contributor option, where you basically paid for ads to "not"
show up on your vids but where "customers choose to pay web publishers for
their content through Google-Ad network rather than deprive the Publishers of
income from advertisements."
In all actuality,
they have the absolute right to do demonetize videos, whenever they choose
since they are providing the platform and providing it for free. With 400
vides/minute it has to be a daunting task to catch them all. So, like back in the day, if one person in
class acts up, everybody in the class gets punished.
Yep, we are
complaining and we actually think it has something to do with free speech but
not really. People tend to paint the "Free Speech" brush a bit far.
With YouTube needing
to be bailed out due to Copyright issues, even the "Fair Use Claims"
are negligible. Channels are still getting hit hard!
It's sorta like
this, in my house I ask folks I invite into my house to remove their shoes, if
they refuse, well, since it's my house I have the choice of allowing them in or
blocking them from coming in. After all it's my house.
Same thing with
YouTube.
On the other hand,
say, you got a partner who gives you all the loving you want.. if you know what
I mean, then all of a sudden and without warning, the loving dries up. You have
had this symbiotic relationship with this person, it was understood that they
would deliver, and now, they are reneging. But the bottom line is this, they
can! And that's the deal
with this YouTube demonetizing vids and shutting down channels left and right.
They Can! Why?
Because it's theirs.
Now we got several
options, and personally I think YouTube is gonna regret bending under the
pressure of their advertisers. In fact, I think even the advertisers are gonna
feel the pinch because even though there is enough junk out there to keep
people distracted, there are really a lot of folks who want to learn something
new, about other stuff than junk. Some people really want to get a wrinkle in
their brain. Not to mention the many
creative content makers who make brilliant videos with outstanding
content! And, since the way YouTube goes
about determining what is or is not ad friendly, is so vague and broad, you
make a video and ain't no telling whether or not it's gonna pass the acid test.
But we as creators
really do have options. And maybe our co-dependent relationship on YouTube
needs to change or even stop in some cases although, if you are streaming
videos from your YouTube channel to other platforms, well, you're still keeping
the lines of communications open, sorta like the whole, "let's be
friends" after a break-up when it really means, just in case it don't work
out that maybe we could jump back into the mix again, if you follow me.
Several things are
happening with this change.
First, it is
censorship. We can dance around it or say it isn't so "Joe" but it
is.
And the genius of it
all, is that it will not be blatant in your face censorship, like shutting down
channels or grabbing vids of channels, not that they stopped doing that either,
but, they have done the insidious, tightening of the purse string censorship.
Like in a
relationship.. the one who has the money can open and close that
"pocketbook" if you follow my drift.
So, instead of coming straight at you, they take the passive aggressive
way of scaring the shit out of you, cause you never know. It's 3 days later and a hundred hours of
editing later, and you get the knock at the door..
"You have been
issued a warrant, we will be arresting your revenues, your video sucks, well
not exactly, we suck, well not exactly, our advertisers suck, well maybe not,
but anyways, we will fall the way of MySpace if we don't tow the line. So, we can't
put ads on your videos. Listen, you ain't the only one who suffers from
purse-string madness. So grow up and get over it and next time, be careful, is
all."
Now, folks can go
through the changes of starting their own YouTube Platform. yeah, fat chance on
that one. Remember, YouTube was out
there, with it's initial creators, Chad Hurley, Steve Chen, and Jawed Karim,
when they worked for PayPal. Regular
folks coming up with a brilliant idea in February 14, 2005. And then Google
started sniffing around. Next thing you know, Google gave them an offer they
couldn't refuse, $1.65 Billion dollars in stock.
By November 13, 2006, good ole YouTube is owned by Google and we all
know what that means.
But we had hope.. we
really did.
And we had smooth
sailing for a little while.... then it started, politics, economics, politics,
economics and politics and economics some more.
I remember when you
could work with YouTube in a partnership capacity where you could get
"special" annuities if you ran your own ads on your videos or ran ads
on other peoples vids etc. Great Idea,
till the corporations stepped in.
Oh Lord, talk about
big brother.. well not quite so big but scary big enough anyways.
Then eventually, the
ads were like the ones you see on TV. And they spend a lot of money making them
ads, let me tell you.
"Harkening back to old-school patronage, Patreon enables fans and sponsors to support artists and creators. Patrons pledge to support artists and creators on a reoccurring basis for each work created, empowering a new generation of creators the ability to make a living off of their passions." https://angel.co/patreon
Now Patreon is cool
to a point, but you have to put in a lot of work to make it happen, and if you
don't have at least 10 thousand subs on YouTube, forget it. Besides, Patreon streams from YouTube so if
at any time YouTube decides to pull your video or copyright strike it, what
can you do, you cannot upload to Patreon
any vids.
Now when it first
came out, in 2013, it was kind of clandestine about getting in the mix. In my
mind, all I could think of is why would YouTube allow a Platform to gain more
notoriety if it meant it would be taking its viewers away from its site. You follow me? Why would YouTube, bring a
tall dark and handsome dude to a date when they look like a nerd and expect you
to be still attracted to them, I'm just saying.
So I began to wonder
if in fact YouTube and Patreon had made some back room deal. Something along
the line of, well as long as you don't allow up loads. But is YouTube and Patreon really that
separate from one another.
Think about it,
folks actually think they are waking up. Folks are making more and more visits
to channels that address some serious issues because they wanna wake up, or at
least take shorter naps.
YouTube was gonna
start losing viewers anyways. Some people have ad block because quite frankly,
they are waking up and don't want to be disturbed by the tripe that some of
those ads have.
So, what if YouTube
was thinking ahead, or let's say Google was thinking ahead and since they are
in the AD world, they know how it works..
Why not have a what appears to be "not ad friendly" platform
and make people pay for it. You see?
Patreon is "not
ad friendly".
Patreon is into tithing so to speak cause folks gotta pay outa pocket not to mention, they have to sign up in order to do so. Which to me are two strikes against it. Pay outa pocket once a month or whatever and you have to sign up in order to do so. Huh???
Patreon is into tithing so to speak cause folks gotta pay outa pocket not to mention, they have to sign up in order to do so. Which to me are two strikes against it. Pay outa pocket once a month or whatever and you have to sign up in order to do so. Huh???
Other solutions can
be going to other platforms where you can upload your videos and get revenues
that way. there ain't too much competition out there, just yet, but if this
keeps up, other platforms will be developed. People will come along to grab the
spoils of the YouTube collateral damage and create other platforms that you can
upload their videos to.
Or you can make a
video, upload it to YouTube and tell everyone to come where you are now.
Or you can find some
other ingenious way, cause YouTube, if it sees folks leaving in droves might
snatch your vid down for some unknown reason especially if you have millions of
subs.
You can also, just
find a more creative way to get your point across. You know, use some of your passive aggressive
skills to work around YouTube warriors.
Watch your title,
watch your key words, watch your description. Put love, pancakes, strawberries,
apple pie and icecream in the description and key words. Avoid anything that
will piss them off. in other words "Self Censor" sorta.
Or we can call a
YouTube boycott, for one week, no creators create anything, at all!
Nothing. Since the advertisers want to
boycott YouTube, well, the creators can too.
Ha, that would be
awesome, we could "make" YouTube do it our way and fight back by
giving them the finger. LOL, that would
never happen, we can't even get folks to boycott Walmart, but I always say,
boycotts are winners in any power struggle.
Bottomline, we
YouTube creators or shall I say, we video creators have to be more creative in
finding ways to get our videos out there and get them funded. But first we must read the terms of service
before we sign on the dotted line. And who on God's green earth is gonna read
all that stuff or even understand it, you practically have to hire a lawyer to
translate!
Meanwhile the
begging campaigns go on and on.
If we sell stuff on
our videos, that's even more work. And a
small channel like mine with just a little over 3000 subs, well we don't even
make that much off the adsense anyways.
Unless of course we
make videos that are, you know..... non threatening to the advertisers.
We would have to
make a whole paradigm shift in our creating to get that pocketbook to open up
again. And if we have any integrity..
well we will eventually become more and more disenchanted, hostile and
resentful, and after a while, give it up or find something else to do.
All in all, this
thing that YouTube is doing will eventually shift YouTube into the twilight
zone, not that it ain't already there, and it will see its viewership decrease,
its revenues' from ads decrease and other competitors grab up the spoils.
Next thing you know,
YouTube will go the way of MySpace. But
of course, these corporate moguls always have contingency plans. They are gonna push YouTube Red, News outlets
and TV shows will start airing their programs on YouTube and the very thing
that they were up in arms about and not wanting to advertise will be in their
faces. But maybe not so much, because we
all know that mainstream media is scripted. So, it will be safer for YouTube in
the long run and maybe even more financially lucrative.
Not sure how that
would work though, unless YouTube/Google is asking for a cut of the ad revenues
from the News Outlets and TV Shows, cause I doubt if advertisers are gonna pay
twice for the same display, but who knows.
The fact is they are
already advertising on TV programs, and news channels anyways around similar
topics, but I think, since they want a piece of the action, their real plan is
to squeeze the little guy out of the way so they can get the big dudes in there
that will gain them even more revenues.
In a minute, YouTube will replace television and to me, that is the final goal. They see that more and more people are going to YouTube for information and entertainment. They see that more and more folks are streaming YouTube thru their TV's so why not go all the way? Haven't you seen that free trial flash across your device?
There was a time
when you had to record from the TV and then upload it to YouTube, eventually,
it won't be necessary.
So Google backed
YouTube is playing the passive aggressive role of resistance until we
comply. If not, then they will go for
the tall dark and handsome dude who has a much bigger pocketbook than the
average YouTube creator has.
And so that ends my
two cents on the matter.
I wonder if YouTube will monetize this video, since I
figured out their game plan. We shall see..
INTERESTING LINKS
WTF is YouTube’s Demonetization?
HELP!! YOU TUBE WANTS TO KILL MY CHANNEL
YouTube pushes harder to tag videos 'too offensive' for ads
https://www.engadget.com/2017/04/03/youtube-pushes-harder-to-tag-videos-too-offensive-for-ads/
YouTube is randomly demonetizing videos
YOUTUBE DEMONETIZING VIDEOS | Media Censorship and The Bigger Picture (Mr. Repzion, Philip DeFranco)
Youtube Responded, But It Gets Even More Confusing...
Patreon
Let's Talk about Patreon versus Adsense ads
Art Marketing Vlog: Why I DON'T use PATREON
Crowdfunding’s Patreon Takes Aim At YouTube’s Business Model
Patreon is a membership platform that makes it easy for artists and creators to get paid.
FYI – There's a legal storm brewing in Cali that threatens to destroy online free speech
Patreon
YouTube will no longer allow creators to make money until they reach 10,000 views
YouTube Competitors (35)
AN OVERVIEW OF YOUTUBE FAN FUNDING
Getting Started With Angel Investing
YouTube is facing a full-scale advertising boycott over hate speech
YouTube Hate Videos Haunt Advertisers on Google
History of YouTube
"Both ATandT and Verizon may have an ulterior motive to make YouTube look like an untrustworthy spot for marketers because both companies are trying to sell more digital ads in their own networks."
YouTube Introduces Super Chat, Phases Out Fan Funding
Sob story from band that lost $11,000 was actually a marketing stunt
Google Has Acquired YouTube
