Just can't imagine that the percentage of these cases would be significantly high, so that it actually matters. Like, I have never even seen somebody complaining about a Coca Cola ad playing before a violent movie on TV. I consider this to be a laughable complain.
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Kotaku: YouTubers Say They Can't Make Money Covering Call of Duty: WWII
- Thread starter LordOfLore
- Start date
Just can't imagine that the percentage of these cases would be significantly high, so that it actually matters. Like, I have never even seen somebody complaining about a Coca Cola ad playing before a violent movie on TV. I consider this to be a laughable complain.
SmokedMeat
Gamer™
Norris1020
Member
I feel very conflicted on this because I enjoy watching guys like Max and Boogie and pull for their success but on the other hand the fact that some individuals were making 7 figures off of YouTube just seemed absurd and never sat right with me.
mr teaspoon
Member
Also a lot of peeps who have no sympathy for the idea that people making a living off of Youtube now need to get off their asses and get real jobs.
Wtf are you talking about. That has nothing to do with the article at all
Phoenix RISING
Banned
TannerDemoz
Member
Yeah, very.
It's insane to put all of your career opportunities into pursuing a Youtube account full-time imo.
What happens when one day, that opportunity goes?
Just my opinion I'm not shooting people down for doing the things they love, but seriously: making online videos isn't a viable career.
And the majority of 'vloggers' do my tits in
constantstatic
Member
Time to get a real job like the rest of us I guess. Although these policies seem really dumb on YouTube's part. If I got to sit at home and make tons of money playing video games I would be happy it lasted 7 years now it's time to get a real job.
Even Simone Giertz's videos got demonetized.
What an odd thing to say. It's okay as long they don't make too much money? :S
What an odd thing to say. It's okay as long they don't make too much money? :S
Triggerhappytel
Member
You pull for their success, just so long as they're not earning too much money?!
ThatStupidLion
Member
i'm all for advertisers pulling out....then we can go back to youtube videos being made by people as a hobby for the love of the content and not greedy bloated over produced content.
mindatlarge
Member
Why doesn't Google just age gate the content or something of the like...perhaps something that just states that "the following may include themes not suitable for young children", would that not appease advertisers? Do advertisers not realize that adults also buy their products, not just families with children?
Or is this more about advertisers not wanting to possibly offend anyone regardless of age? Either way, this sort of conduct won't help the platform continue to grow or even stay as varied, lively and interesting as it has been in the past. Just seems like a decision that hurts both Google and its advertisers if people start going elsewhere for subjects that aren't entirely family friendly or sensitive issues that some may find overwhelming. I understand you wanna always distance yourself from the ugly side of people when it comes to hate and whatnot, but to come down on certain subjects that can be discussed and handled in a responsible way is unnecessary censorship.
Or is this more about advertisers not wanting to possibly offend anyone regardless of age? Either way, this sort of conduct won't help the platform continue to grow or even stay as varied, lively and interesting as it has been in the past. Just seems like a decision that hurts both Google and its advertisers if people start going elsewhere for subjects that aren't entirely family friendly or sensitive issues that some may find overwhelming. I understand you wanna always distance yourself from the ugly side of people when it comes to hate and whatnot, but to come down on certain subjects that can be discussed and handled in a responsible way is unnecessary censorship.
No, he/she said they don't give a shit in the end, ie: 'they're discussing this now but they have no investment in it beyond that, you do you'.
Saying that, a lot of the skills you obtain from running a channel profitable enough to sustain you financially can be transferred. If these people have the drive to be a content creator to the point it pays well, there's a good chance they'll be fine.
Tal Shiar Agent
Banned
The analogy someone made earlier about YouTubers being street performers with their hat turned up on the ground is pretty accurate for the people who relied only on ad revenue. People like Kinda Funny won't be affected at all because they've cultivated a community and use patreon as their main source of funding and get sponsors. That's how you do YouTube right. I don't understand what has been going through the people's minds who've only been relying on ad dollars. It's nuts.
YouTube is a terrible platform for the creators. Nothing that changes there is discussed, and there's absolutely no change that benefits YouTubers. Of course there needs to be some curation of the content to not monetize child abuse, racism, etc., but it should never be something automatic, and with a system that is known for years to be flawed.
We really need a competitor for it.
Yeah, I hope sites like IGN and EasyAllies also go down. Maybe GAF could also stop getting ad moneys, right? That would be awesome. Making money through gaming, THE NERVE of these people!!!!
We really need a competitor for it.
Yeah, I hope sites like IGN and EasyAllies also go down. Maybe GAF could also stop getting ad moneys, right? That would be awesome. Making money through gaming, THE NERVE of these people!!!!
RichiRamjag
Member
I work for a large corporation as well and yeah, we're not much different. Have a few mates in social media as well and corporate is over them with a magnifying glass at all times. We're really careful about what message we send out and how our brand is perceived.
I know some of you would rather dogpile the guy, but technically, he isn't wrong. It's probably best to have a backup plan, especially when dealing with such a fickle platform and industry.
In regards to his other opinions, I don't have much to say other than he's free to feel however he likes (who cares if n7 thinks it's not a job?). Personally, if this discourages the amount of toxic youtubers, I'm all for it. Fans can always support via patreon. Easy allies has already taken that route themselves.
This pretty much.
Breakfast at Noon
Member
Like saying all entertainers need to get a real job..
LordRaptor
Member
So terrible that people can make a living off it without having to expend any energy or money of their own on infrastructure costs, product management or ad sales
always crazy bacon
Banned
It's not that, more the begging "like and subscribe" overreation/boobie thumbnail image and clickbait videos that should be sent to their own island and not bury more thought out mature content. Or vice versa.
Doing what exactly? Why is this a "great thing" for you? I don't understand.
What do you consider a "real job"? Why is making videos not legitimate in your eyes?
This should be all industries. I only want the guy who loves garbage to pick up my trash.
Tal Shiar Agent
Banned
Does DF rely solely on YouTube ad dollars? No. That's the issue. The YouTubers who expanded into other, more stable sources of revenue will be fine. It's the people who couldn't think 2 minutes into the future and only get money from ad dollars.
Norris1020
Member
As in making millions of dollars for playing video games is ridiculous, yes.
Most people don't have YouTube Red. So unless YouTube becomes a paid only service, or magically gets people to sign up in droves, they'll be dependent on advertising.
The Technomancer
card-carrying scientician
Advertising economy is terrible. Unsurprised
So you're jealous. Got it.
Why? Those people earned that money​ fair and square. Plus, it's not just playing videogames, these people do it all day everyday, and have to edit those videos, maintain equipment, and everything else associated with video production.
Ah yes, the rallying cry of everyone who is stuck working in a cubicle.
I too wish all entertainment would cease to be.
Let's all enjoy our soulless march towards an inevitable death.
Joy is overrated.
Why does it matter? It was a viable market and people made money from it. They are essentially just personalities the same as talk show hosts or other similar jobs. If you think it's easy to make millions playing video games I encourage you to try.
Norris1020
Member
Nope, good for them that they've done what they've done. I'm not hating on the creators but the system that let the monetization go that far. I find it amazing that it's sustained as long as it has to be honest.
MegaSackman
Member
My only worry is ACG channel, he's getting these messages a lot lately.
To be fair they do more than just play video games and they do work hard.
But I agree the payment to quality ratio is well off. If they're getting paid millions of dollars, I want them to be the fucking Kojima of video content.
You realize that this isn't a zero sum equation, right? These YouTubers making money doesn't actually hurt you.
Jacknapes
Member
I feel sorry for content creators, i mean it's going to be a shock to a lot of them when the pay comes in (if it hasn't already) lower than it has been. But still, one creator i watch said it well. "If you want to do this as a hobby and not a career, you'll be ok". Guess that's why people like H3H3 have moved to Twitch to plug the revenue gap.
Some Nobody
Junior Member
Lol, I'm glad this doesn't just bug me. All this veiled anger is ridiculous.
Making money is incredibly difficult these days even if you cover non-violent scary stuff. I've been following the thoughts of some YTers and most have to rely on Patreon and Twitch donations to survive now. YT is no longer a place they can make a living off longterm unless you have a massive amount of subs.
This has never been a thing. Michael Bay still makes bank off the Transformer movies, while there are great films that barely profit.
There are people who are amazed the videogame industry is as big as it is. The fact that these people are getting rich off the internet if anything should prove the legitimacy of their jobs.
Masterspeed
Member
There really needs to be someone to step up and rival YouTube. I know we have Twitch for streaming live, but we need something to knock YouTube off it's pedestal.
Dusk Golem
A 21st Century Rockefeller
I don't understand your logic. They didn't get money from playing video games, they got money from running ads over videos of them playing games that millions of people watched and continued to watch because they enjoyed the content.
This is also something that is not exclusive to Let's Players or gaming videos, and this issue isn't just hurting them either, but the whole YouTube platform. It's the same as television. If you can attract and audience who want to and will watch your content that's monetized, you should earn money for that.
Who cares honestly. I honestly feel people 'overplay' the importance of youtube vids or streamers especially when it comes to console. Nintendo is rarely covered and always gets shit on by YouTubers and yet they are making bank, switch is selling like hotcakes and BotW and Mario Kart are selling kike crazy.
Even if major YouTubers don't cover CoD: WWII because they have low ad revenue possibilities, this CoD is going to do gangbusters in sales. The first CoD in years to go back to WWII after a lacklustre infinite warfare. Kids are going to be playing it and YouTubers cannot avoid a major game like this ad revenue or not. The average consumer does not care joe schmo youtuber didn't post about CoD: WWII or they weren't able to see it.
shadowsdarknes
Member
It's really not any less legitimate for the most part.
But like a career such as a musician or actor, it's unstable or unpredictable.
The poster everyone is quoting is right. It's not a long term job and relying on YouTube is risky.
Some Nobody
Junior Member
Let's go cross-media with this. The Transformers comics (specifically More Than Meets The Eye/Lost Light) is a work of art but the dude who writes it gets paid a regular salary while Bay churns out garbage in film form and takes home hundreds of thousands.
Angry Joe use to have a really good job in the tech industry working for Alienware. Pretty poor example, he has years of experience in the Tech industry. Same for someone like JayTwoCents (and tech channels aren't in danger here).
This is where I applaud people like Kinda Funny, Easy Allies, Jim Sterling, and even LinusTechTips. Why? Because they are paving the path to success that doesn't rely on YT ads. Let's say LinusTechTips had all their YT ads yanked. It would be a significant blow, but it wouldn't sink them as they diversified their income. Every single video has a sponsor. They make money on a different platform that provides early content access. They have a successful merch store. They make money off affiliate links for the products they talk about.
The other three I mentioned make money off either just Patreon or Patreon plus sponsors. The easiest way to get your ad revenue back is to either crowd fund your work or instead of YT controlling your ads, go directly to the ad companies and convince them your audience is worth advertising to with a sponsorship.
You still hold this mantra that making YT videos "isn't a real job". Yet, it is. The ability to develop large audiences and be entertaining in some fashion is a real job and has real world value.
I know a lot of people assume it all boils down to swearing while playing a game, but it's far more than that. Even then, there are tons of brands that want to target "gamers". Companies want to make money first and foremost. They don't just ignore gamers who swear for company image. Their image is dollar signs. You just need to make friendly
With those companies.
YT is a middleman that is worried about their share. And I understand it. You think YTers are getting hit hard? YT was barely breaking even. So imagine what advertisers pulling out did to YT.
Obviously google has money. That's not the issue.
There are many ways to continue to do what you do for a living. YTers are simple now getting to deal with what traditional websites have dealt with for years. It's really hard to make money creating content on the internet relying on middlemen and ad companies where you have no control or they try to restrict what you do (i.e., no swearing). But many websites have found a way around it. For me? I actually make a majority of my income off affiliate links. As my primary source of money, large social media followings are more valuable for me to make money than the actual site and YT channel I run.
But I still spend a majority of my time working on the site and channel and use those affiliate links to fund the work I actually enjoy doing.
This stuff is a legit job. YTers just haven't had to think outside the box and enjoyed the same boom in easy success websites did in the the early to late 2010 or so. Now it's nearly impossible to make money off standard ads. Yet websites still exist, right?
Norris1020
Member
I get that. I poorly structured the point I was trying to make. I sounded like I was attacking Youtubers for their success but intended to make the point that the whole thing has been almost "Wild West" uncontrolled for a long time now. I'm not saying I'm exactly supporting what's going on to the fullest extent because some good guys and girls are getting hit when they don't deserve to, but there are also many unsavory videos and creators out there that have been reaping way too much off their ad money while spreading toxic content.
In theory, absolutely. However, in practice it's probably a nightmare. We can all hop on the "they're a massive company with infinite money" but that's not how any big company works. There are divisions of people with limited budgets who are supposed to check videos and the amount of money coming in (I assume) doesn't cover what's actually needed to fully curate everything that's posted every minute (even to the more limited "monetized" pool). In the end, they hope a computer algorithm will root out everything and help them actually make money, and if you're using a computer you err on the side of caution. A bunch of false positives that keep advertisers happy is better than one missed negative that causes an advertiser to take their money somewhere else, thereby making you less money so you can hire less people.