Jon Church
Aug 27, 2017 · 3 min read

Personally I dont think we can predict yet if friction is created by people subscribing to multiple independent creators.

From the article:

Even if someone was able to attract the size of the audience required to make such a move possible, over time, people would grow wary of subscribing to yet another publication, entering payment information for it, etc. This is similar to the current backlash we’re seeing in the great unbundling of cable television. Sounds great on paper, but in reality, it’s a lot of work to hunt down and pay for all the content you want.

First off, that statement sounds eerily similar to dismissive attitudes in the early 90’s towards consumers embracing online shopping. A stretch, yes, but the point is that we cannot predict how services in the future will tackle ux problems that we are imaging now, and how superior these services could potentially be. We will have to wait and see

When someone chooses to pay an independent content producer they are doing so because the producer makes something they value and cant get elsewhere.

Secondly, I think you neglect the reasons people pull out their wallets to support a creator directly.

When someone chooses to pay an independent content producer (I subscribe to stratechery and FunFunFunction) they are doing so because the producer makes something they value and cant get elsewhere.

Its a pleasure to support the influencers and stars that create the content which makes the internet indispensable and personal to us. People often subscribe as a means of identifying with those they respect, creating a more intimate relationship between producer and fan.

If the social media age has taught us anything, its the voracious appetite of people to consume content they feel a connection to.

Given the current state of things, there is a real scarcity of creators who are able to successfully move their audience off the platform they are connecting on, over to patreon or a standalone offering to convert. We dont yet know how consumers would act if they had a plethora of choices in the space. Or if someone offered the infrastructure as a service to help creators monetize their audience. Hence we see Ben Thompson and the like making it partly because they are high profile, partly because they are media savvy, and we assume its beyond the reach of a “regular” creator.

So I think the issue lay not in consumer behaviors, but in the current state of platforms which are unfriendly to creators who want to own their audience.

But of course, thats the compromise, platforms obviously have incentive to own their users and take a cut of creators earnings on the platform. I write on medium because Im just starting out and its a great place to write, plus the reach it gives you is amazing. Thanks Medium!

I think its important to state here that the efforts Medium makes towards making it easier for more people to make money off their content will always be curtailed by the platforms need to scale that revenue to a venture sized level in order to sustain the platform.

This is no dig at medium, Im sure theyre gonna do awesome stuff and please a lot of writers, but the point here is that Medium will never be the savior the content industry needs by monetizing others content on their site. There will always be creators left wanting for features that conflict with Medium’s goals as a company.

Lastly, I feel much more compelled to support individual creators. I love Medium but supporting them does not engender the same feelings as giving my money directly to a creator, on their own terms.

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