Censorship On YouTube Creates An Unique Opportunity For Decentralized Platforms Like Steemit to Create An Alternative Video Platform
Censorship On YouTube Creates An Unique Opportunity For Decentralized Platforms Like Steemit to Create An Alternative Video Platform
If you haven’t been watching YouTube drama or hearing the news in the past few days, it seems that YouTube has changed its terms of service to allow demonetization of any content they deem not “advertiser friendly”. YouTube is a private entity overall, but the fact of the matter is, they are using the new terms of service to censor and essentially push undesirable creators off YouTube. Many creators who rely on ad revenue to survive and continue to make content are now fearing that they will be one of the targets whose videos get demonetized. It isn’t only small channels that have been targeted either, with channels like Phillip Defranco’s with about 4.5 million subs and various channels around the 1 million subscriber mark. I linked the video created by Defranco to explain the changes, below. In order to find videos that YouTube deems not “advertiser friendly”, they are using severely flawed bots and refusing to undo any demonetization actions that have been taken. Some might say, go to another site, but currently no other centralized sites compare to YouTube in the form of earnings for content creators. However, a decentralized solution might be the answer.
I believe that this change and other changes that YouTube has made in the near past, creates a massive opportunity for Steemit to cater to a whole new use case. A decentralized platform like Steemit can bring in content from YouTube, cut out the centralized middle man and better reward creators for their work. With YouTube taking 50-60% of the ad revenue on many accounts, it is unbelievable that many of the creators can even make a living. People who are averaging a million views per video and adding hundreds and thousands of hours of entertainment to many around the world deserve to be properly compensated for their work. YouTube’s current cut is a modern day form of sharecropping, allowed because they have exclusivity of the platform. If we open up a new platform that can bring in and support existing YouTube creators, we can capture a large portion of the market cap from YouTube and do it in a decentralized way that would even cut out advertisers.
This brings me to how realistic a possibility it would be to build a video streaming service off the Steemit blockchain. I am not a technical person by any means, but maybe people could chime in on if this could actually work, or if there was a work around to do it. If we could find a way to create a Steemit site like Steemtube that would have all the current features YouTube has and working off the same blockchain as Steemit, we could revolutionize the content creation platform. Video accounts and Steemit accounts could be synced so creators could easily and effectively talk and respond to fans. Even if the videos were hosted elsewhere and not actually on the Steemit blockchain, we could still create a video platform that would monetize videos without creators. Fans would essentially be able to directly influence a creators earnings by liking their content rather than the current model, where creators rely on advertisements, which many adblock.
Another great part about a new decentralized platform, is that it would be censorship resistant and avoid the copyright abuse by companies that has been going on for years on YouTube. For example, despite using footage and screenshots of Nintendo products under completely legal fair use, Nintendo will pull down your video without hesitation if you are not an affiliated Nintendo channel. This type of abuse by companies and the advertisers themselves is another main reason why people have been trying to leave YouTube, but have been vastly unsuccessful. If we truly want content that is uninfluenced by corporate entities and sponsorship we need a decentralized solution that can still provide creators with a living. Steemit can be that solution if the correct steps are taken to make it happen.
People often talk about the big killer app in crypto and on the blockchain, and monetized video and content creation could be it. If you are a programmer and know the technical ins and outs, how can we make this a reality? Even if workarounds have to be used, like posting a video elsewhere and then putting it on the blockchain, if we provide the basic video site infrastructure, we would still be able to capture a large part of the market. Creators will start flocking over in droves if they know that another solution is available. Let me know what you think, suggestions you have or how we can make this a reality.
-Calaber24p
Youtube's current flaws that appeal to "Steemtube"
Steemtube:
-How to by a tech-y, but not a coder
The actual posts would be on the blockchain, but the way to make videos decentralized > uncensorable, is a user hosted peer to peer network, where the users taking part in the network would get some type of share. Or to use this badboy: storj.io
The recent bad changes to YouTube, are just a big plus for a possibility like Steemtube.
Note: Graphene (the technology behind Steem(it) can't be used for video hosting.
yes we need steemit channels , like youtube has !!!
That is basically someones blog page isn't it? I would sooner suggest Steemit gets something similar to sub-reddits but avoid having moderators that delete anything that doesn't fit their narrative.
Youtube's loss could be Steemit's gain!
ABSOLUTELY!
definitely, youtube has become a corporate entity that needs to die.
I've been watching the YouTube drama. It really feels like something overcorrected (as opposed to all the notices being intended effect of new terms.) I even saw a screenshot on twitter of an innocent video about a video game being bad getting de-monetized(!?)(Possibly Nintendo stuff you referenced above.)
This leads me to think they'll pull back a bit, and don't have total control of the system, and de-monetization will be less aggressive. I've also seen chatter that disputing stuff is pretty effective/responsive.
This doesn't mean I think we should all relax and put all our eggs in one basket. Just that I think this spike of chaos will settle down.
On to your main point: Creative people definitely need to be able to distribute their risk/investment across a bunch of platforms (and some Internet romantics would even say, "Host it yourself, own your infrastructure, etc.") I'm in a camp where I think creative people should be allowed to not think about distribution/technical/marketing (if they want), so I get the appeal of YouTube's platform. Those creators can focus just on making videos. (And it's been amazing to watch creators "grow into" caring about marketing/distribution/business, as they get big, but only because they were able to focus on creating in the early stages.)
YouNow (very popular, but mostly with very young people, so unknown to many) is a social video platform not worlds apart from a consumer-friendly steem. Users can gift each other virtual goods/currency, (as opposed to less efficient sliver of ad rev share). So lots of creators are getting well paid over there, without requiring the huge audiences it requires to make sizable money on YouTube.
As soon as I saw steem, I thought of YouNow. (YouNow being a possibly model for how simple the steem experience could become.)
Anyway, if you or any lurkers are interested in social platform monetization patterns, I track them and wrote some stuff up.
UPDATE: it's looking more and more like the only thing that changed was the notification style, not the policy. These videos were already demonetized, just silently.(https://medium.com/internet-creators-guild/youtube-de-monetization-explained-44464f902a22#.q4npv7iyi)
They also still get YouTube Red revenue.
It is an overreaction, basically companies who post ads have a say on what kind of content their ads are placed with. Its actually perfectly sensible.
However, Steemit has a similar problem in the form of a dependence on whale votes. The equivalent would be to cry that giving whales a right to vote on what they like is a form of censorship.
It is amazing how many possibilities exist here. I wish I was smart enough to carry some out lol.
You stole my line! But it's ok. No choking required
I had the same thoughts, but Steem at least alone isn't capable of bringing something that could replace Youtube. Steem actually only allows text, photos and videos have to be linked. This is b/c the blockchain would become waay too big if you even allowed photos in posts let alone videos.
We need an open source decentralized way to upload videos so they can then get linked (maidsafecoin?) and then an interface like steemit could come in with steem's monetization system. Ads wouldn't be necessary anymore but if you do use ads no more middleman taking a huge cut, but monetization directly from user engagement really has the least middlemen and is best for content creators and content quality.
I have been trying to get my other YouTubers to start posting their content on this site. But when a person like me posts the above quality video on this EXACT subject and makes .09 cents on here, and this blog was probably written in about a hundredth the amount of time, and get's 1 grand. It becomes a hard sell to other YouTubers who aren't going to waste their time like me. This "decentralized" platform is actually highly centralized, and if you aren't a favorite of one of the whales on here, you might as well be whistling in the wind. https://steemit.com/steemit/@titusfrost/steemit-ending-twitter-shadow-banning-and-youtube-censorship
Here in Germany we really stuggle with "censorship", because so called GEMA is locking many songs on Youtube. Because of "missing rights" and some sh**.
It really annoys the heck out of me when my favourite tracks get banned!
I'm glad that I stick more one steemit since June.
Happy steeming and have a great day
Steemit would benefit from its own private video channels. Youtube had been screwing people for awhile on ads. Then as you mentioned Nintendo which is still acts like the internet doesn't exist. Both hamper creativity. Steemit is the answers to our creative people here.
Great Idea!
Clearly Steemit has a lot of growth potential and I really think we are only seeing the tip of the iceberg when considering all the possible growth opportunities. Platforms like YouTube and Facebook are becoming so cocky about their current level of power it is only a matter of time before they get too cocky and shoot themselves in the head. The People are waking up. And when a majority of The People decide they have had enough and move beyond these power hungry megamonsters Facebook, YouTube and others will have to adapt to the new paradigm or die off like the dinosaurs. I foresee a bright future ahead for decentralization and Steemit!