The new CEO of Youtube is bullish on Web 3 and NFTs but what does that really mean for the future of the creator economy?

Susan Wojcicki is stepping down after nearly a decade-long tenure as the CEO of Youtube. She will be replaced by Neal Mohan who has previously served as Youtube’s chief product officer for 7 years. Neal has gone on record to discuss his positive outlook on Web 3 as he believes NFTs can have a major impact on the creator economy.

“Web3 also opens up new opportunities for creators. We believe new technologies like blockchain and NFTs can allow creators to build deeper relationships with their fans.” Mohan wrote in an official YouTube blog post.

Instead of just watching a video on Youtube, fans could engage further by owning a piece of the content from their favorite creators.

“For example, giving a verifiable way for fans to own unique videos, photos, art, and even experiences from their favorite creators could be a compelling prospect for creators and their audiences.” — Mohan

You might be wondering if this is actually viable. After all, why would audiences want to shell out money for something they can already access for free?

Fans will pay to support their favorite creator. This is the fundamental premise behind Patreon which radically changed the landscape of the creator economy over the last decade.

Founded by Jack Conte, Patreon offers creators the ability to diversify their revenue streams by providing exclusive access to their work and a deeper connection with their communities. The fans who are willing to go the extra mile are super fans.

Super fans contribute to Patreon to get access to exclusive art, behind-the-scenes content, voting rights on future uploads, etc. Many of the things that currently exist behind a paywall on Patreon can easily be converted into NFTs.

“Together, they’ll be able to collaborate on new projects and make money in ways not previously possible.” — Mohan

The case for NFTs in this instance is far more compelling than the core premise of Patreon. That is because NFTs offer ownership over digital assets that can be traded on a secondary market. This opens up possibilities to have your digital assets accrue value as your favorite creator goes from relative obscurity to mass appeal.

Imagine owning an early NFT from MrBeast from when he was watching paint dry or counting to 100,000. That definitely has value to someone in the MrBeast community and would fetch a pretty hefty price on a secondary market today.

Youtube has every incentive to roll out NFT support directly on its platform so it can own a slice of the revenue that Patreon currently generates.

Web 3 integration with the creator economy is inevitable and has me very excited for the future of both industries.

“There’s a lot to consider in making sure we approach these new technologies responsibly, but we think there’s incredible potential as well.” — Neal Mohan