Creative Juice had a big presence at the recently-concluded VidSummit. At the online video gathering, the fintech company unveiled a pair of additions to its proprietary Juice Funds. The Refresh product will offer Creative Juice’s take on the catalog licensing model pioneered by companies like Spotter and Jellysmack. Creators who opt for a Reserve deal will be paired with a Creative Juice team member.
Both Refresh and Reserve are built on top of Juice Funds, which Creative Juice uses to pay creators. The two-year-old company added $50 million to its in-house fund after raising a $15 million Series A round earlier in 2022. Since announcing that infusion, Creative Juice has delivered $6 million to videomakers, 50% of whom come from underrepresented backgrounds. The company plans to invest another $20 million over the next six months.
The new funding models will diversify Creative Juice’s payouts. Refresh deals can be three, six, or nine months long, though they are only available on YouTube. As with other catalog licensing programs, Refresh provides upfront cash to creators. In exchange, Creative Juice collects ad revenue from previously-uploaded content.
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Refresh deals offer invites to Creative Juice events, and the company’s other new product also tightens its connections with its clients. Creators who take a Reserve deal receive “access to a dedicated Juice team member” along with other perks. Reserve contracts, which can include up to $2 million in funding, come in one-year, two-year, and three-year varieties. Unlike Refresh, Reserve is not limited to YouTube; creators on Facebook, Twitch, and Patreon can receive those funds.
Creative Juice showed off the beta versions of Refresh and Reserve at VidSummit, which took place in Los Angeles during the last week of September. “Juice Funds Refresh motivated me to make higher quality videos and hire a video editor,” said TheSimonShi, who is an early user of Creative Juice’s catalog licensing service. “At some point a business owner needs to start outsourcing and now I can pull the trigger to grow my business with easy up-front cash thanks to Juice.”
Refresh and Reserve will open for all “qualifying creators” in “early November,” according to an email from Creative Juice. Though the company is backed by several big YouTubers, it offers financing to smaller creators, too. In a statement, Creative Juice Head of Creator Partnerships and Investments Dustin Blank said that channels “from 10,000 subscribers to 4M+” have cut deals with his team. “We focus on supporting and investing in creators of all sizes and verticals,” Blank said. “This type of creator is just as important as a big star – which is what the creator economy is all about.”
