A month ago, YouTube launched YouTube Red, a premium subscription service that costs $9.99 per month. Several outlets have described Red as YouTube’s Netflix competitor, which seemed like a flawed analogy at the time of the service’s launch. Now, however, the Red-Netflix comparison is gaining some traction. According to the Wall Street Journal, YouTube is in talks with major Hollywood studios and could license TV shows and movies for distribution on Red.

The Wall Street Journal’s report didn’t lay out any specific rights holders with whom YouTube is talking, though it did say that Susanne Daniels, whom YouTube hired away from MTV earlier this year, is involved in the process, as is former Netflix exec Kelly Merryman. According to one of the WSJ’s sources, YouTube has also enlisted the help of Google Play, which has brokered its fair share of film and TV licensing deals with major studios.

YouTube can make a strong pitch to any studios it talks to. It still has far more users than other video service in the US, and based on its early returns, it has done a good job–at least initially–of converting those users into paying Red subscribers.

Any shows or movies YouTube brings to Red will join a number of original programs already planned for the subscription service. The video site has made a big investment in its homegrown creative community, whose members it has tapped for at least ten premium projects. Those creators have also benefitted from the launch of worldwide YouTube Spaces that foster large-scale collaborations. Should YouTube devote more resources to a Netflix-style library of films and TV shows, it would represent a significant shift in the site’s content priorities.

Of course, YouTube would not just be competing with Netflix; other services, such as Amazon Video and Hulu, have also scooped up exclusive distribution deals in order to attract viewers to their respective subscription-based platforms. Given the licensing “arms race” developing in the world of streaming video, it will be interesting to see where YouTube decides to cut into industry–so long as joining the race is indeed its plan.

Filed under: Articles, Featured, News, YouTube, YouTube Red by Sam Gutelle
No Comments »

[Editor’s Note: Tubefilter Charts is a weekly rankings column from Tubefilter with data provided by OpenSlate. It’s exactly what it sounds like; a top number ranking of YouTube channels based on statistics collected within a given time frame. Check out all of our Tubefilter Charts with new installments every week right here.]

Scroll down for this week’s Tubefilter Chart.

It’s another installment of the weekly Tubefilter Chart of the Top 50 Most Viewed YouTube Channels Worldwide and Justin Bieber is currently king of the internet.

Chart Toppers

Justin Bieber held onto his #1 spot on the worldwide chart once again this week. The 21-year-old pop star’s November 13, 2015 release of his fourth studio album was preceded by and has since been followed up with a steady stream of music video uploads of hit singles from the new EP. Purpose and its associated videos helped propel the Bieb’s channel to more than 187.3 million views on the week. In second place is the reigning queen of online video, Adele. The British musician back from a three-or-so-year hiatus with a smash hit ‘Hello‘ continues to rack up tens of millions of views. This week she tacked on nearly 139.8 million more.

Ryans ToysReview is up next in the #3 spot. The family-friendly channel dedicated to Ryan and the toys with which he plays ended the week with almost 113.9 million views. LittleBabyBum is next up in fourth place. The British YouTube channel that’s home to music videos featuring songs from your prepubescent years amassed almost 107.2 million views in the week.

And rounding out the Top 5 is again The Ellen Show. The YouTube home of Ellen DeGeneres’ eponymous daytime syndicated talk show stayed relatively constant and ended the week with nearly 102.2 million views.

Top Gainers

The honor of one of our Top Gainers this week goes to The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon.

The YouTube repository for clips from NBC’s flagship late night talk show always does well in terms of views, but this week was special because of a visit by Adele. Interview clips from the British pop star’s appearance (as well as one regular performance and another with classroom instruments) performed very well online, helping The Tonight Show‘s YouTube channel to an 89% week-over-week increase in views, more than 55.5 million views on the week, and the #24 spot on the worldwide chart.

Distribution

All in all, the top 50 most viewed YouTube channels accounted for 3,335,194,764 views last week. Here’s the distribution of a few of those channels by multi-channel network:

• Vevo: 14 channels in the Top 50, with Justin Bieber at #1.
• Maker Studios: 4 channels in the Top 50, with TheDiamondMinecart at #19.
• AIR, BuzzFeed, XMediaDigital: 2 channels each in the Top 50, with AIR’s Miss Katy at #21, BuzzFeed’s BuzzFeed Video at #15, and XMediaDigital’s mashamedvedtv at #10.

And here’s the distribution of the this week’s Top 50 YouTube channels by country of origin:

• United States: 24 channels in the Top 50.
• Great Britain: 7 channels in the Top 50.
• Canada: 4 channels in the Top 50.
• India, Thailand: 3 channels each in the Top 50.
• Russia, Ukraine: 2 channels each in the Top 50.
• Ireland, Netherlands, Philippines, Sweden, Turkey: 1 channel each in the Top 50.

As always, keep up to speed with the latest Tubefilter Charts and all of our news at Tubefilter by following us on Twitter, becoming a fan on Facebook, and watching our videos on YouTube.

OpenSlate is a video content analytics platform that tracks more than 225,000 YouTube video channels and measures their ability to attract, engage and influence an audience. By providing one consistent measure of quality – the SlateScore™ – OpenSlate helps marketers, producers and agencies hone their online video marketing strategy.

Filed under: Articles, News, statistics, Statistics, YouTube, Youtube Chart by Joshua Cohen
29 Comments »

Welcome to the Fund This column! Each week, we’ll look at a planned web series or other online video project currently in search of funding on crowdfunding sites. We’ll tell you what the series is all about and explain why it is worth your money. Do you have a project that’s currently being crowdfunded? Contact us to let us know and we may feature it in upcoming installments and check out previous installments right here.

Project Name: We All Fall Down

Asking For: $25,000 on Kickstarter

Amount Raised Thus Far (At Time Of Post): $9,400

Days Remaining In Campaign (At Time Of Post): 16

Description: Move over, grownups. The kids’ table is taking charge. Young characters will look to fight off a zombie infestation in We All Fall Down, a planned series directed by Kurt Knight and produced by the team at Arrowstorm Entertainment.

The series’ premise is simple: A deadly virus has turned the world into a flesh-mad hellhole, and only those under the age of 18 are immune to the disease that turns adults into zombies. The result is a society run by children who have quickly lost their youthful innocence. Specifically, the ten episodes of We All Fall Down will center on an 18-year-old protagonist who is looking to take care of his brother before he too is consumed by the virus. The show’s Kickstarter page states the show’s premise more succinctly: “If Lord of the Flies and Walking Dead had a baby, this is what it’d look like.”

Creator Bio: Arrowstorm Entertainment has spent the past decade turning out low-budget productions. As we learn from this image of its previous films and series, the studio tends towards the fantasy and horror genres.

Best Perk: Backers who contribute at least $69 receive several rewards, including a neat survival “card” that fits in your wallet and contains a number of nifty tools.

Why You Should Fund It: The post-apocalyptic genre has been done well online, but given the high production values associated with zombie-style thrillers, there is still plenty of room for a studio like Arrowstorm to carve out a space for itself. The company’s previous entries have served as dependable fare, and We All Fall Down has the interesting premise and sterling presentation it needs to serve as worthwhile entertainment.

The bonus, as far as potential backers are concerned, is that the series has already been shot; the Kickstarter funds will support its post-production needs. We All Fall Down isn’t far from coming to fruition; with your help, it can take the final step.

Got a crowdfunding campaign you’d like to see featured in Fund This? Be sure to contact us here.

Filed under: Articles, Featured, Fund This, Kickstarter, News by Sam Gutelle
No Comments »

Univision has made a smooth transition to the digital age, and now, it has a new home for its web content. The Latin-American broadcaster has launched Udisea, a destination that will deliver short-form videos to Spanish-speaking Millennials.

Udisea, whose name is a play on the Spanish word for odyssey, can be found both on YouTube and on the Univision website. The platform’s bread-and-butter will be short, scripted videos led by creators from the US and Latin America. At launch, several of these videos are already available, though as they are all in Spanish, my hopelessly-monolingual brain cannot offer many more insights beyond the ones I’ve already shared.

Udisea is not Univision’s first foray into the world of online video; the broadcaster has also brokered deals with digital media companies like Bedrocket and MiTu. Earlier in 2015, it extended its own digital presence through the launch of a multi-channel network for Hispanic creators.

“Hispanics and multicultural millennials over-index in the consumption of digital, mobile, and social content, and our research shows that more than half of Univision users are going online to view videos that are different from what they see on TV,” said Univision Chief News and Digital Officer Isaac Lee in a press release. “With the launch of Udisea we are providing this vast and digital-avid audience a fresh, new platform they can call their own, where they will enjoy original scripted videos and web series created especially for them.”

Additional Univision videos can be found on the company’s official YouTube channel, which has more than half a million subscribers.

Filed under: Articles, Featured, News, Univision by Sam Gutelle
No Comments »

Twitch may have just launched a creative category and run a days-long programming block dedicated to Bob Ross, but at its core, it’s still a platform all about the live streaming of gaming. And this week, the Amazon-owned site wants to share that dedication to video games with its devoted users. Starting December 3, 2015, Twitch will let broadcasters co-stream content shot at the upcoming 2015 Game Awards and the PlayStation Experience 2015.

Twitch will cover the 2016 Game Awards (which pulled in 1.93 million live stream viewers in 2014) on December 3, as well as the PlayStation Experience event from December 4-5. According to a company blog post, Twitch is giving broadcasters “our official blessing to capture content” from either event for use on their channels, whether that’s a simple rebroadcast or a commentary session with viewers. All Twitch streamers need to do to co-stream Game Awards or PlayStation Experience content is set their game selection to one of the events so the ensuing live streams are properly categorized.

Twitch has already used co-streaming for broadcasters at a previous well-known gaming event. Back in June 2015, Amazon’s live streaming site delivered live footage and coverage from the Electronic Entertainment Expo (E3). Twitch users were allowed to co-stream official footage on their individual channels, and the live streaming site even provided French and German coverage options for non-native English broadcasters, as well.

You can check out Twitch’s official live streaming coverage via The Game Awards channel and Playstation channel. And if you’re a streamer, feel free to use all the event content you want, courtesy of Twitch.

Filed under: Articles, News, TwitchTV by Bree Brouwer
No Comments »

After months of teasers, trailers, and production updates, RocketJump: The Show is here. The Hulu series, which goes behind the scenes of the titular production company, has shared the first two of its eight episodes.

In its simplest form, RocketJump: The Show is an inside look at the creation of eight new short films from a preeminent digital media studio. As we learned from the series’ trailer, this process involves its fair share of challenges, struggles, and creative squabbles. Sure enough, the first episode–which focuses on a short described as “a western horserace in the style of the Fast & the Furious”–spends as much time unraveling the dynamics of the RocketJump operation (led by Freddie Wong and Matt Arnold) as it does showing off the completed product.

The first episode of RocketJump: The Show is available for free from the series’ official Hulu page. To watch the rest (including a second episode that premiered alongside the first), you’ll need to pick up one of Hulu’s monthly subscription plans. RocketJump aficionados will definitely be most likely to enjoy the series, but it has enough action, laughs, and genuine insights to entertain non-fans as well.

Filed under: Articles, Featured, Hulu, News, RocketJump by Sam Gutelle
No Comments »

Digital stars across the pond have a new representation option. NVC, a social talent management agency, has officially launched in the UK to represent online creators.

Founded in Berlin in 2014, NVC is described in a release as having “social talent management and the delivery of content and experiences to younger and online audiences at its heart.” With a new office in London, the new media agency acts as both agents and managers to create long-term career growth strategies for currently 18 digital creators across categories like health, fashion, lifestyle, comedy, travel, and street magic. Some of NVC’s top creators include beauty vlogger Vania Fernandes (over 254,000 YouTube subscribers), fitness creator Scola Dondo (190,000 subscribers), and vlogger Sam King (160,000 subscribers). NVC also helps brands connect with partnered online stars and their fanbases.

“We give our talent all the support they need, both reactively and proactively so that they have the freedom to focus on creating content and building their relationship with their audience,” explained NVC’s Managing Director Christian Grobel in a release. “No matter what we do, we always have our talents’ long-term careers in mind and will ensure through advice and guidance that their projects are in-keeping with their personal brand.”

“We know that the emotional connection between creators and their audience is strong and considerably more powerful than the relationship people have with traditional media,” Grobel continued. “So for us it’s really important that we help brands tap into this relationship and drive engagement or interest in their message in a way that works for them, the creator and the creator’s audience. Collaboration with businesses that want to work with our creators, and vice versa, is absolutely key.”

NVC’s specialties and services don’t end at talent management. NVC is working on in-person events where European fans can interact with digital talent. The first convention, centered on NVC’s beauty creators and dubbed Glow, will take place near Cologne, Germany on January 30, 2016. NVC also represents traditional celebrities like actors and musicians who are capable of producing content for multiple platforms. The talent agency is also

You can learn more about NVC by visiting the agency’s official website.

Filed under: Articles, Industry, News by Bree Brouwer
No Comments »

Brittany Furlan recently appeared on the big screen in the film We Are Your Friends. Now the digital celebrity, known for her comedic Vine videos, will star in the upcoming feature-length comedy Random Tropical Paradise.

Directed by Sanjeev Sirpal and produced by his Shabash Films banner, Random Tropical Paradise tells the story of a groom (played by Bryan Greenberg) abandoned at the altar who then goes on his honeymoon with his best man (Brooks Wheelan). The two get into plenty of unexpected scraps and comedic shenanigans, including starting a war between the Triad and the Mafia. Other cast members include Joe Pantoliano (The Matrix, Memento) as a Mafia leader and Spencer Grammer (Rick and Morty, Greek) as a potential new love interest for Greenberg’s character.

Variety, who originally broke the news, didn’t clarify what role Furlan would be playing in Random Tropical Paradise. The Vine star does, however, have plenty of experience behind the camera (smartphone and otherwise). In addition to her work in films and various shorts, Furlan has appeared in a promotional campaign for Regal Cinemas, various comedy sketches for the YouTube channel ‘Super Happy Fun Time, Yay!’, and worked on a travel-based Snapchat campaign from Marriott International. The 29-year-old digital star also won the 2014 Streamy Award for Viner of the Year.

Furlan boasts over 9.7 million followers on Vine.

Filed under: Articles, Channels, News by Bree Brouwer
No Comments »

Consumer electronics company Lenovo has added its name to a fair number of sponsored YouTube projects, but its latest partnership with the online video community looks like its most ambitious so far. It teamed up with production company Portal A for a campaign that features YouTube stars Matthew Santoro, EeOneGuy, and TheViralFever.

The campaign is titled #Goodweird, and it gave each of its creative partners the chance to film a dream video using the Lenovo Yoga tablet. Santoro, who hails from Canada, used the opportunity to travel to California and create a video about water; EeOneGuy, from Moscow, elected to shoot a weird music video; TheViralFever, led by its Indian stars, opted for a “weird, crazy Western.” The three creators then convened on Lenovo’s channel for an intercontinental dance-off that features the Yoga tablet front-and-center.

The video is the latest example of Portal A’s ability to link up YouTube stars across multiple oceans. The San Francisco-based studio previously worked with creators in North America, Europe, and Asia for its 2014 YouTube Rewind video.

“Lenovo empowered the YouTube creators (and our team) to create content that will feel truly special the creators and their audiences. It’s a different way of looking at marketing, where the first objective is to delight and entertain millions of viewers, positioning the brand as content creators themselves (as opposed to simply advertisers),” said Portal A’s Zach Blume in an email. “These creators each have their own niche audiences, and what this campaign was able to do was speak to those niche audiences authentically, and build a bridge between them. If you look at the comment thread on just the collaboration video, there are fans of each of the creators around the world participating in that conversation.”

Blume also predicted that the videos within the #Goodweird campaign are expected to combine for more than 20 million views.

Filed under: Articles, Branded Entertainment, Featured, News, Production Companies by Sam Gutelle
No Comments »

Reelio has made it easier for nonprofits to spread their messages by way of the powerful influence of digital creators. The influencer marketing platform has launched a new division called Reelio Cares, aimed at connecting digital celebrities and creators with nonprofits for cause-based campaigns.

Reelio Cares’ mission, as described in a release, is to “change the way nonprofits and brands market their causes in the digital space.” The new division will help corporate brands and nonprofits find digital influencers and leverage these creators’ large online followings to raise awareness for important causes. Reelio hired on nonprofit founder and entrepreneur Ava Kelly to serve as manager of its altruistic initiative.

Reelio Cares offers creators and nonprofits an expanded range of tools through Reelio’s pre-existing platform, specifically tailored to help them manage their cause-based campaigns. For example, “Choose Your Cause” gives brands the opportunity to highlight a pre-existing partnership with a specific cause or enlist Reelio to assist in finding a cause aligned with the brands’. Creators can also choose to “Donate Influence” by providing content and support to nonprofits in need of raising awareness. Reelio Cares is already utilizing these tools and more in its work with several nonprofits and brands on cause-based campaigns, including United Way, Ad Council, Make-A-Wish Foundation, and DIGDEEP.

“Reelio Cares allows us to combine our expertise in influencer marketing with our passion for working with non­profits,” said Pete Borum, co­founder and CEO of Reelio. “We want to develop a more meaningful culture in the digital space that  gives back for the greater good, and Ava is the perfect person to help lead this initiative. Reelio Cares is a win­-win-win between the brand, cause, and creator – history shows that brands increase consumer loyalty and conversion; and causes are able to amplify awareness and fundraising through cause campaigns.  Additionally, creators are able to deliver authentic charity messages to increase connectivity and engagement with their loyal and new followers.”

“Non­profits have already seen great success working with digital influencers,” added Kelly. “YouTube in particular is the perfect platform for the three major genres of non­profit campaigns:  awareness, advocacy, and fundraising. I look forward to helping guide these companies in the digital landscape, as well as educating influencers on how they can better raise awareness for issues that are important to them.”

Reelio Cares is only the most recent initiative by an online video brand to cater to the digital needs of nonprofits and organizations. In November 2015, the new multi-channel network Good Amplified launched to help nonprofits with their YouTube channel management and strategies to reach more viewers. That company has already helped Make-A-Wish increase their YouTube channel subscribers by 66%.

You can learn more about Reelio Cares by visiting the company’s new website.

Filed under: Articles, News, Reelio by Bree Brouwer
No Comments »

Within the 400 hours of content uploaded to YouTube every minute, there are years of programming featuring the site’s homegrown superstars, Let’s Play, and other video-game-associated clips, cute animal videos, family vlogs, shopping hauls, and billions of other videos that one could include in millions of other categories. With all that content, it’s easy to forget Google’s online video sharing site is also one of the top destinations for video advertisements from companies and agencies big and small, hoping their creation will gain traction and go viral.

Now, YouTube is celebrating some of the most memorable ads from 2015 with a new contest. In partnership with The Webby Awards, Google’s online video site has launched #TheYouTubeAd of 2015. And through December 8, 2015, online video fans have the chance to vote each day for their favorite ad out of the 25 nominees selected by the powers that be at YouTube.

Voters can choose from five different categories to see which ads have been nominated as the best of the best. For example, Geico’s “unskippable” video ads and Arnold Schwarzenegger‘s Omaze prank campaign are contenders in #TheYouTubeAd “You Wish You Were In” category. Additionally, fans can choose the video ad “That Gets Them Going,” including Always’ “Unstoppable” ad from its viral #LikeAGirl campaign. Voters can also choose from the decidedly internet-culture-influenced categories “#TheYouTubeAd That’s Your Guilty Pleasure,” “#TheYouTubeAd That Restores Your Faith in Humanity,” and “#TheYouTubeAd That Gives You Feels.”

You can submit your daily votes for the best YouTube ad of 2015 through the contest’s official site. Voting ends on December 8, and the winners will be announced on December 9.

Filed under: Articles, News, Webby Awards, YouTube by Bree Brouwer
No Comments »

In one of the coolest branded projects to happen all year, Verizon has created a working smartphone within the video game Minecraft. In order to demonstrate its creation, the telecom giant turned to two popular YouTube stars–CaptainSparklez and SethBling–who conversed with each other via the in-game phone.

The in-game smartphone is a real, functional cellular device that can connect to Verizon’s network, send and receive video calls, and display web pages. That description may sound like science fiction, but it is possible thanks to the existence of redstone, a Minecraft material that essentially functions as an in-game programming language.

Independent Minecraft players have showed off some truly inspiring redstone contraptions, including a fully-functioning scientific calculator created by SgtGodswordBerserker in 2012. Verizon’s smartphone, which it built using an app called Boxel that translates pixels into Minecraft blocks, might be the most impressive in-game technology we’ve seen so far.

When it came time to share the smartphone with the world, Verizon turned to its two brand partners on YouTube. SethBling is known as one of Minecraft’s foremost redstone experts, while CaptainSparklez, whose main channel has nearly nine million subscribers, is perhaps the most visible personality within the YouTube Minecraft community. In individual videos on their respective channels, CaptainSparklez and SethBling show off Verizon’s smartphone before using it to conduct video calls with one another. CaptainSparklez’s video is embedded below, and SethBling’s can be viewed here.

Verizon’s Minecraft smartphone is an example of branded content done right. It is a fascinating development that meshes well with the digital personalities of its two spokesmen. It’s also a working cellphone within a video game. Just stop and think about that for a moment. Pretty cool, right?

Filed under: Articles, Branded Entertainment, Featured, Minecraft, News by Sam Gutelle
1 Comment »