Patreon Evaluating Ways to Reward Content Creators With Digital Tokens, NFTs

For many artists and producers who use the internet to distribute their work, the challenge is to make money while still establishing a fanbase. For YouTubers, podcasters, and writers, sharing art online and creating a fan base can be a rewarding experience - but not for their finances.

Patreon is a crowdfunding website that allows fans (or patrons) to support and give to artists. The platform allows creators of videos, webcomics, music, podcasts, and other types of content to make extra money from what would otherwise be free content, while simultaneously letting the fans support their favorite artists' platforms.

According to the website, Patreon "invite[s] fans to be a part of something fantastic that gives them unique rewards they want, such as greater access, exclusivity, and engaging experiences," and allows contributors to join and make monthly monetary payments to their favorite artists.

Patreon is actively looking into leveraging cryptocurrency and non-fungible tokens to reward content providers (NFTs). While presenting at The Information's 2021 Creator Economy Summit on November 7, Jack Conte, the CEO and co-founder of Patreon, and Julian Gutman, the company's Chief Product Officer, discussed their interest in the crypto industry. FansForX gives you access to Patreon's inner workings, including how cryptocurrency is used to compensate content producers.

Innovation in Crypto and NFT Space

Based on Gutman’s speech at the event, clearly, there is a lot of innovation going on in the crypto and NFT arena. It's uncertain whether this is sustainable throughout the entire creative economy, but there are some fundamental technological components to NFTs as a method to provide value to your audience and then acquire value from secondary purchases. NFTs are a type of virtual collectible that can be purchased using cryptocurrency.

Long-Term Earnings

The CEO of Patreon also stated that he believes NFTs can provide content providers with a long-term revenue stream. Patreon, like Walmart and AMC Theatres, appears to have opted to join the bitcoin bandwagon. For the time being, the company is considering launching a digital token - Patreon presently allows creators on its site to offer tokens or creator cash to patrons as a membership benefit.

Patreon and ICO

According to Laurent Crenshaw, Head of Policy at Patreon, the company not talking about launching any kind of initial coin offering, which is expressly prohibited by Patreon's current criteria. However, the company has heard from a lot of creators who are interested in offering their patrons exclusive memberships and privileges in the form of a coin or token, a digital thing they can keep that proves they're a member of your fan club. Crenshaw further said that they could look into making such an offer permissible under our rules.

Patreon’s Potential Offering

The company is exploring allowing creators to issue their own coins, each with a fixed value that can be purchased by their fans. Other firms such as BitClout, Roll, and Rally are developing "creator coins" to allow fans to pay to support content creators. The creator coins may also benefit the followers, particularly if the artist whose coin they acquired becomes an overnight sensation, increasing the value of those coins.

What the Future Holds!

Conte wouldn't reveal whether Patreon has somebody working on bitcoin payment development, but he did indicate the company was "considering it." The firm discussed the possibility of enabling creator coins during an online discussion in September, but the idea was abandoned while the company dealt with the fallout from Mastercard's tighter adult content standards.

Conclusion

It would be unsurprising if Patreon adopted coins, NFTs, or both. Despite early fears of a pandemic, Patreon has done spectacularly, raising $90 million in just a year, and there's little doubt the service is trying to recruit as many authors as possible. A change in stance on cryptocurrencies could entice content creators who are presently unable to experiment with the technology due to a lack of alternative options.