Red Bull says it gives you wings–but it’s the one soaring to new heights in the world of digital content. The bev brand has always been a prolific sponsor of athletes, and it was an early adopter of esports partnership, tapping Ninja as its primary sponsoree back in 2018. In the seven years since, it’s become an equally prolific sponsor of content creators, partnering with folks like Ludwig and sponsoring creator events like Apex Legends‘ Red Bull Legends Inn.

Red Bull has also become a massive producer of content. It posts at least one video a day to its YouTube channel, generating a collective oomph of over 1 billion views a month. Those videos usually feature partner athletes or creators championing competitions and achieving high-octane feats of athleticism.

Now it’s aiming to add another champ to its roster.

Fortnite streamer and YouTuber SypherPK has picked up a Red Bull sponsorship ahead of this weekend’s $500K Fortnite Championship Series Pro-Am tournament in Los Angeles.

He’ll debut his set of wings at the tourney, but the partnership will continue after. A rep notes SypherPK has been an advocate for fitness and entrepreneurship for years, documenting his weight loss journey and sharing the process of building his digital marketing business Oni Studios. The SypherPK x Red Bull team-up will be aimed at making “an even larger impact on and off-stream,” they tell Tubefilter.

The plan is for Red Bull to create “unique and engaging experiences” with SypherPK for his audience of 10.5 million subscribers on YouTube and 7.2 million followers on Twitch, they add.

What that’ll look like remains to be seen. Sypher already has his own Fortnite skin, and Red Bull has its own Fortnite map. Maybe they’ll unleash their combined powers on a custom island?

Whatever they do, this partnership continues Red Bull’s streak of sponsoring Fortnite player-creators. Like we mentioned, it scooped up Ninja back in the day, and it’s also done deals with creators like MrSavage, Lachlan, and–most recently–Mongraal. (It’s also sponsoring players outside of Fortnite; it just picked up League of Legends streamer Caedrel this week.)

“From its iconic soapbox race series, flugtag, and more, Red Bull is no stranger to bold experiences,” the rep tells us. “As the functional beverage brand continues to expand its influence in gaming, it’s leaning on its award-winning production and creative firepower to give its roster of creators wings.”

All that influence has added up to Red Bull having the highest earned media value of any beverage brand, according to CreatorIQ. But it’s being chased by other creator-savvy brands, like creator-founded Gamer Supps, which just brought on longtime brand endorser SMii7Y as an investor and equity partner.

Time for those wings to flap a little faster.

Filed under: Creator, Esports, Homepage Feature, Red Bull by James Hale
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Each week, we handpick a selection of stories to give you a snapshot of trends, updates, business moves, and more from around the creator industry. This week, we’re tracking creators as they engage with comedy festivals, influencer boxing events, and toy-obsessed kids

Pop culture minute

The revived Just For Laughs festival is getting an assist from Smosh. As the venerable comedy festival looks to recover from a 2024 bankruptcy declaration, it’s turning to one of YouTube’s longest-running brands. Smosh and JFL are teaming up for a program that will reward social media creators with development deals, mentorship, and other perks.

TikTok-favorite banker Pattie Ehsaei wrote a book. After dispensing financial tips to more than one million followers, Ehsaei scored a book deal with Balance, which published her “financial freedom playbook.” The titular advice of her tome is straightforward: Never Date A Broke Dude. Seems like a sound lesson to me.

Events and happenings

After feuding with h3h3productions, iDubbbz is stepping away from the Creator Clash. The one-time “Content Cop” doesn’t want his spat with Ethan Klein to spill over to the charitable influencer boxing event he founded. Therefore, he announced on his YouTube channel that the upcoming third edition of the Creator Clash will continue without him. One clever commenter described the upload as an “unboxing video.”

VidCon drops full agenda for 2025 Anaheim convention. After inducting a group of groundbreaking creators into the “VidCon Hall of Fame,” the event series revealed the schedule for its upcoming return to the Anaheim Convention Center. The 2025 edition of VidCon runs from June 19-21.

YouTube eyes Central European content at NATPE. YouTube exec Andreas Briese will deliver a keynote at the 2025 edition of the annual TV marketplace. Budapest is playing host to this year’s edition of NATPE, which figures to include some announcements related to YouTube’s global expansion (which includes a lot of growth on TV screens).

The biz

Mark Rober’s Crunchlabs is the latest creator brand to get a Moose Toys deal. The toymaker has already worked with MrBeast to turn fantastical designs into retail favorites. Now Mark Rober’s Crunchlabs is entering into a multi-year licensing agreement with Moose Toys. Specific product lines that will emerge from the deal will be announced at a later date.

Patreon is “celebrating” Apple’s legal defeat. A judge ruled that Apple’s App Store fees are overzealous. Patreon, which previously came up with a “great plan” for circumventing the onerous fees, cheered the court’s decision.

Around the world

Korean politicians are adding mukbangs to their campaigns. Can candidates win over young voters by eating a lot of food? Some Korean pols are embracing the mukbang by broadcasting from inside their kitchens. The guy who cooks the favorite foods of world leaders had better pay attention.

The Japanese royal family got a silver play button. The Imperial Household Agency only needed a month to go from zero subscribers to 100,000. The Japanese royals are not the most-followed world leaders on social media, but a spokesperson for the Agency said that “we would like to make more efforts.”

YouTube is becoming a battleground amid rising tensions between India and Pakistan. As the dispute over Kashmir becomes increasingly hostile, South Asia’s two biggest nations are banning news channels on social media. Those channels get billions of views per week, so limiting access to them will significantly impede the free flow of information.

Mergers and acquisitions

Footballco adds to its women’s sports coverage through SoccerGrlProbs. One of the most-followed women’s soccer accounts on social media will join a network that already includes notable footballing destinations like Goal. With its all-encompassing coverage from the pitch, Footballco is becoming as big of a force as the U.S. Women’s National Team.

PodX is coming to America through Lemonada Media. The former of the two podcast companies has already used studio acquisitions to get footholds in regions like Europe and South America. Now, by adding one of the biggest independent podcast brands in the U.S. to its portfolio, PodX is continuing on its global trajectory.

The internet is a strange place

Doggyland will be the opener for the Kidz Bop tour. The legends of West Coast hip-hop are so yesterday. Snoop Dogg has a new musical collaborator: Kidz Bop, which will join forces with Snoop’s Doggyland for a summertime swing. In my opinion, Kidz Bop has ruined enough pop music already. If they try to perform a cover of the “Affirmation Song,” we riot.

The Garrett Popcorn heiress is blowing up on TikTok. Chicagoans who are obsessed with their local popcorn brand can now watch videos created by Hannah Chody, the heiress to the Garrett empire. Her vibe falls about halfway between haul girl and travel influencer. Now that’s what I like to call “pop culture.”

A Beatles lover is covering all of their songs to create a definitive ranking. What Jorge Bernardo is doing on YouTube is very cool, but I can save him a lot of time. The best Beatles song is “Lady Madonna,” and that’s all I have to say about that.

Filed under: Articles, Featured, Homepage Feature, News by Sam Gutelle
Comments Off on Have you heard? Smosh steps toward Just For Laughs while iDubbbz steps away from Creator Clash

In the leadup to TikTok‘s latest ban deadline (which was, once again, extended), it ran a charm offensive, talking up its impact on the U.S. economy and highlighting just how many small businesses would be affected if it were to get the perma banhammer.

Now it’s putting money where its mouth is: For May’s Small Business Month, TikTok is giving 500 American small businesses $2,000 each in ad credits, plus “dedicated time with a TikTok Ads Expert to customize a plan to get the most out of the platform,” the platform said in a company blog post. That adds up to $1 million in free advertising for little guys.

“Small businesses are the heart of innovation, culture, and community across the United States—and on TikTok, their impact is bigger than ever,” TikTok wrote. “Among the 170 million users in the U.S., more than 7.5 million businesses, from family-run shops to emerging brands, are leveraging TikTok to grow and connect with new audiences.”

The goal here for TikTok is to get even more small businesses plugged in to its ad portal. Only SMBs that haven’t yet advertised on TikTok are eligible, and the $2K credit only lasts from June 14 to July 14, 2025–meaning these companies are getting just a taste, with TikTok clearly hoping they’ll re-up with ad spend out of their own pockets.

The other upside for TikTok? If a small business receives the credit, it must give TikTok blanket permission to use its branding (logos, testimonials, etc) in future marketing materials. Pretty sweet deal for the big man.

SMBs interested in the creds can apply here.

This giveaway isn’t TikTok’s only Small Business Month move. It’s wooing both policymakers and business owners with more events.

On the policy side, TikTok will shepherd its ever-growing ecommerce monster, Shop, around to lawmakers in New York and Texas. Small business owners who sell products on Shop will join to chat with said lawmakers about the impact of TikTok on their home states’ economies, the platform says. (Shop’s getting a boost online, too, with a special “Small Biz Fest” tab that’ll highlight SMB-made products to TikTok users for the last two days of the month.)

For creators, TikTok is putting on a cross-country rash of roadshows, meeting small business owners in New York City, Los Angeles, and Austin with programming aimed at teaching them to “maximize” their TikTok presence. It’s also launching a weekly webinar series starting May 15 that will offer “expert guidance and cutting-edge strategies to launch effective campaigns and make the most of TikTok’s business tools,” it says.

In its blog post, TikTok hints all this effort won’t end when Small Business Month does.

“At TikTok, we believe small businesses fuel more than the economy—they shape our culture and community on the platform and beyond,” it said. “That’s why we’re proud to support their journeys and successes not just in May, but year-round.”

Whatever its future plans, one thing is clear–TikTok plans to make itself a vital part of American small businesses’ digital sales. Will that keep it from a ban? Maybe. Under this administration, nothing’s guaranteed.

Filed under: Homepage Feature, TikTok by James Hale
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Neuralink‘s first wave of human trials has led the company to a notable milestone. Bradford Smith, the third person to receive Neuralink’s namesake implant, used the device to upload the first YouTube video edited with a brain-computer interface.

Since its launch in 2016, Neuralink has worked on a device that interprets the brain’s motor signals and translates that data into cursor movements and other computer commands. The company founded by Elon Musk began human trials in 2024, with quadriplegic Noland Arbaugh becoming the first person to receive the implant. Smith, an Arizona resident with ALS, became the first nonverbal Neuralink patient earlier this year.

Thanks to his newfound faculties, Smith was able to script and edit a nearly ten-minute YouTube video. To narrate the clip, he used xAI’s Grok model to capture his old speaking voice and replicate it. Generative AI also helped Neuralink decipher Smith’s brain activity.

“I’ve spent the last few years with ideas and thoughts I cannot share because it takes too much time to type it out,” said Smith, who previously communicated using an eye-tracking device. “I can already communicate faster and in more ways than I could before, and we are still working on ways to get even faster.”

Some neuroscientists have argued that Neuralink is not as revolutionary as it seems on the surface, but the results Smith has achieved using the implant are nevertheless stunning. His video shows that brain-computer interfaces have far-reaching potential, not just for basic communication, but for artistic expression as well. As Neuralink’s trials expand, people with disabilities will get a chance to share thoughts and feelings in a manner that was previously the stuff of science fiction.

And then there is the Elon Musk piece of all this. The world’s wealthiest person doesn’t run Neuralink’s day-to-day operations, though his right-hand man Jared Birchall is listed as the company’s CEO. One wonders if Musk is planning any integrations that would bring Neuralink-generated content to X. The neuroscience firm already employs Musk-owned generative AI technology — will it incorporate his social media platform next?

Filed under: Articles, Featured, Homepage Feature, News, Technology by Sam Gutelle
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YouTube‘s annual Brandcast presentation is scheduled for May 14, but NewFronts attendees got an early taste of the platform’s new and upcoming ad products. Google‘s NewFronts pitch included details about the matchmaking tools, technical upgrades, and measurement solutions that will supercharge forthcoming brand campaigns on YouTube.

Google separated YouTube-related updates into three buckets: Features that help brands find appropriate creators for their goals, tools that facilitate partnerships based on those finds, and analytics that allow for precise measurements within the resulting campaigns.

The biggest announcement within the first of those three buckets involves an expansion of the Insights Finder. The new version of that tool will help brands “easily find the most relevant YouTube creators,” according to Google VP of Global Product Solutions Kate Alessi. Brands can also uncover the content categories that are most closely linked to the territory covered by their campaigns.

Multiple NewFronts presenters have identified that locating like-minded creators is a common ask from brands and agencies. YouTube’s improvements to the Insights Finder sound similar to the changes Meta announced to its creator-sourcing tools.

To partner with those perfect brand fits, a creator matchmaking tool is required — and that’s where YouTube’s updated BrandConnect platform comes in handy. To continue its work as a middleman, YouTube is enhancing the Creator Partnerships tool within the Google Ads hub. “From emerging to large creators, you can find the perfect match right in Google Ads,” Alessi said.

On the measurement side of things, YouTube is bringing in “significantly better reporting,” per Alessi. Incoming solutions will let advertisers create audience segments based on creator content that has been linked to their ads. That data, in theory, allows for a much clearer understanding of the viewers who are engaging with sponsored content.

YouTube’s technical upgrades have serious potential, but at the end of the day, the platform’s X-factor is the same thing it’s always been: A massive community of popular, influential creators. A fact sheet shared during the NewFronts presentation noted that ROI on YouTube is 23% higher than on social channels. Short-form video ads from other platforms that are uploaded to YouTube see a 21% increase in long-term brand growth.

To continue harnessing the power of its community, YouTube is introducing Creator Lead-Ins: Short videos from creators that will run before related ads. The idea of the Lead-Ins is to use creator credibility as a tool for driving brand engagement.

The marketing power of the YouTuber will surely be a major topic of conversation once Brandcast returns to New York’s Lincoln Center on the 14th. YouTube CEO Neal Mohan and several other execs are slated to talk at that event — and if you know YouTube, then you know there will be plenty of celebrity cameos worked into the presentation as well.

Filed under: Articles, Featured, Homepage Feature, NewFronts, News, YouTube by Sam Gutelle
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Meta‘s presentation at the 2025 NewFronts detailed the tech company’s plans to turn its owned-and-operated platforms into havens for creators and brands. Notable products discussed during the pitch include an ad format that will capitalize on Reels trends and an upcoming ad test on the X competitor Threads.

The latest addition to Reels will bring more monetization opportunities to a format that is already shared more than 4.5 billion times per day, according to Meta. Reels trending ads, as the product is known, will include placements that will run “immediately after the most popular, engaging creator-created Reels across our platforms.”

As with similar formats like YouTube Select, Reels trending ads will give brands two choices for their spots. The ads can be paired with a generalized slice of top-performing content, or they can be limited to bundled lineups in categories like beauty and sports.

Ad programs of that ilk have been a hot topic at this year’s NewFronts. TikTok announced additions to its TikTok Pulse product, while LinkedIn revealed its intention to connect advertisers to top-performing creators.

Now Meta is following suit. The tech giant’s plan to harness the power of short-form fads is multifaceted. In addition to Reels trending ads, Instagram partners will be able to access a Trends tab in the Creator Marketplace. That feature, which is currently in the testing phase, will harness AI to identify the topics that are trending on Instagram Reels. Another product Meta will soon test is a Creator Marketplace Discovery API that will make it easier to build tools that help brands identify the best influencer partners for their campaigns.

Meta is making its platforms work for creators

Brands often take center stage at the NewFronts, but Meta’s pitch included some good news for creators. The company’s dual focus is not a surprise, since Mark Zuckerberg has said that creators will be key if Facebook is to become cool again.

One of Zuck’s deputies offered more details about what that creator-centric push will look like. Ricky Van Veen, an online video pioneer whose career path included stints at Vimeo and CollegeHumor, used his NewFronts spiel to express what Meta platforms mean to creators — and vice versa.

“Creators content and community building are becoming more and more central to the Facebook experience, and we don’t have to tell you how critical Instagram is to creators,” said Van Veen, Meta’s VP of Creative Strategy. “It’s basically their home base, the preferred marketing channel across the entire social ecosystem for both creators and brands alike.”

Van Veen identified comedian Corey B and farmer Katie Van Slyke as two creators who are thriving under Facebook’s current monetization model. Thanks to newly announced features — including an AI recommendation engine that identifies relevant branded content and a Video Expansion tool that resizes ads for Reels — more revenue streams are coming to the two-decade-old social media platform.

“Creators are at the heart of our apps, which are at the heart of culture and connection for people all over the world,” Van Veen said. “People love and trust creators, and as a result, they become a pivotal connection point between people and brands.”

Threads, which has reached 350 million monthly active users, could be the next frontier for Meta’s creator push. Ad tests on that platform are expanding, and by the looks of it, Meta has hardly run out of ways to make money for its millions of users.

Filed under: Articles, Featured, Homepage Feature, Meta, NewFronts, News by Sam Gutelle
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How do you measure a podcast? Spotify is counting the plays.

That’s the name of the audiovisual platform’s newest metric, which will apply to its library of long-form shows. By introducing a new standard measurement for podcasts, Spotify is looking to enrich its creator community and its ad partners while solidifying its position at the forefront of a booming industry.

For creators, the new metric offers “a deeper understanding of how content resonates with audiences.”

That’s how Spotify described the impact of plays in a post published on the For the Record blog. The metric only counts impressions that occurred when a user “actively listened to or watched any episode” of a podcast.

On the surface, that may seem to be a cosmetic change, but Spotify argued that plays will allow creators to draw clear conclusions about the uploads that perform the best. Play counts will be public and rounded to the nearest thousand, so listeners and viewers will be also be able to see what’s hot on Spotify at the current moment.

That bit of data figures to increase discoverability for Spotify creators, and the platform’s podcasters could benefit financially as well. Spotify has touted the success of its revamped Partner Program, which paid out more than $100 million during Q1 2025 alone. If plays do their intended job, allowing podcasters to hone in on their best-performing pieces of content, Partner Program earnings could continue to go up.

With plays, Spotify is continuing to take pages out of YouTube’s book.

The Stockholm-based platform has been clear about its plan to compete with its California-based counterpart. Part of that effort involves a shift to metrics that look familiar to YouTube creators.

Earlier this year, Spotify announced that it would start giving out gold and silver plaques to creators who achieve round-number viewership milestones on its platform. YouTube, of course, has handed out gold play buttons to channels with over one million subscribers for more than a decade.

A shift toward YouTube-style counting will continue Spotify’s evolution, even as YouTube rejiggers its own metrics. For years, online video operatives have called for more standardized metrics — that’s one of the big reasons why Meta simplified its view counts — and Spotify is making it easier to evaluate the relative success of its top-performing podcasts.

The change is also noteworthy for the podcast industry at large.

The podcast industry is growing up. That’s good news for the creators, platforms, and advertisers who stand to benefit from that surge in public interest, but it also reveals the need for consistent accounting and common-sense metrics.

To get a sense of the importance of those analytical innovations, take a look at the Golden Globes. The annual awards show recently announced that it will introduce a Best Podcast category in 2026. Only the “top 25 podcasts” will be eligible for nomination, so it will be important for platforms to measure podcasts correctly — or else the forthcoming awards will fail to reflect the reality of the industry.

With the pivot to plays, Spotify is doing its part. Creators who want to know how the change will affect them can check out the guide published by Spotify.

Filed under: Articles, Featured, Homepage Feature, News, Podcasts, Spotify by Sam Gutelle
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Anyone who followed the so-called “influencer election” knows that political live streams have become a significant cultural force. Now, thanks to Streams Charts, we know just how big it is. The data provider that covers platforms like YouTube, Twitch, and Kick has reported that viewership on political streams has gone up 56% year-over-year, with the 2024 U.S. presidential election serving as a major catalyst.

That data point comes from Streams Charts’ Politics in Livestreaming report, which includes viewership numbers from 2022 through 2025 (so far). During the first quarter of 2024, political streams raked in about 2.61 billion hours of watch time across all the platforms Streams Charts measures. By Q1 2025, that figure had gone up to 3.4 billion hours of watch time, which actually represented a slight decrease over the previous quarter.

Photo via Streams Charts

Several factors have contributed to that growth spurt. World leaders like Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi and U.S. Representative Alexandra Ocasio-Cortez have become creators themselves, and global news organizations have established round-the-clock digital hubs.

The 2024 U.S. election cycle served as a level-up moment for political creators, who saw their influence rise dramatically across the board. The Trump administration’s decision to let creators into the White House press room suggests that the impact of the influencer election is here to stay.

“In Q1 2025, political content nearly matched the volume of gaming streams on Twitch, a platform known for its gaming roots,” reads the Streams Charts report. “In absolute terms, politics accounted for over 11% of all content watched across the industry. And that share is still rising.”

The breakdown of that viewership by platform reveals some curious trends. YouTube accounts for nearly 98% of all watch time in the Streams Charts data, thanks in large part to its status as the go-to hub for Indian news agencies. Twitch gets less watch time than YouTube but contributes more overall channels to the political mix; that’s a recurring phenomenon in statistical analyses of the Amazon-owned hub. And then there’s Rumble, which continues to serve as a haven for right-wingers.

Or, to put it more succinctly: YouTube’s most-watched political stream is the official Al Jazeera channel, Twitch’s top entry belongs to progressive firebrand Hasan Piker, and Rumble viewers flocked to the self-explanatory Right Side Broadcasting Network.

Ongoing trends suggest that political creators will be able to consolidate these gains in the coming years. Piker, for example, gets less than half of his audience from U.S.-based viewers, despite his overt focus on American politics. He’s becoming a household name around the world, giving him an immense platform for his left-wing opinions.

And then you have streamers like Kat Abughazaleh and Fidias Panayiotou, who have taken their activity a step further by running for office themselves. Will the growth of political streams convince more creators to walk down that path? If so, the voters who are sick of reelecting aging candidates would surely appreciate it.

Filed under: Articles, Featured, Homepage Feature, News by Sam Gutelle
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Kai Cenat is getting ready to begin his first semester as the “headmaster” of a unique academic setup. The most-watched Twitch broadcaster of 2024 has pulled back the curtains on Streamer University, a get-together that will put content creators in the roles of both students and teachers.

Cenat previously alluded to Streamer University during one of his live broadcasts. He suggested that he would rent out a college campus, put up aspiring streamers in the dorms, and bring in big-name talent like MrBeast and Mark Rober to teach classes on topics like video production and marketing.

His vision came to life on May 6, when he uploaded a trailer for Streamer University on X. The Hogwarts-inspired video describes the upcoming venture as “a school where chaos is encouraged and content is king.”

Welcome To Streamer University🏫
Enroll Now! pic.twitter.com/6vU1nBsW9E

— AMP KAI (@KaiCenat) May 6, 2025

Cenat hasn’t yet revealed the campus that will host Streamer University, but in a follow-up tweet, he said that his school’s attendees can expect “an all-inclusive trip” that will be open to general content creators as well as streamers. Applications for both pupils and professors are now open on the Streamer University website.

To be clear, Streamer University isn’t an accredited program like MrBeast’s East Carolina University team-up. Nor does it feel like a content creation crash course like Airrack’s YouTuber Film School. Cenat’s scholastic setting seems as if it will put social interaction above all else. It will be a place where creators can have fun, collaborate with each other, and rub shoulders with stars — and they might just learn something along the way.

That mission feels true to Cenat’s spirit. While some top-tier creators position themselves as businesspeople at the precipice of a new industry, Cenat’s career has always had a fun-loving, easy-going tone to it. His big moves have more often been Elden Ring marathons and celeb-packed streams rather than retail products or other business ventures. That’s not to say he’s opposed to traditional means of creator brand-building — his partnerships with McDonald’s and the NFL beg to differ — but Streamer University shows us that he’s willing to reinvest his earnings in other creators as long as he gets to cosplay as Dumbledore.

Cenat said that 150 students will be accepted into the first Streamer University class. That number could include at least one notable figure: iShowSpeed‘s brother. Cenat’s frequent collaborator has said that he wants to get his little bro Dian Watkins into the creator world. Streamer University could be the perfect place to make that happen.

Filed under: Articles, Featured, Homepage Feature, News by Sam Gutelle
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If you’re a Netflix subscriber who struggles to find your next binge amidst an ever-growing ocean of content, the streamer’s new look might get you excited. A redesigned homepage will bring more granular information to Netflix’s TV app, while a fresh feed of infinitely scrolling vertical videos (hello, TikTok) will dole out recommendations for mobile app users.

Netflix Chief Product Officer Eunice Kim and Chief Technology Officer Elizabeth Stone previewed the design update in a presentation uploaded to the Still Watching Netflix YouTube channel. Kim described the new look as a “clean and contemporary design” that will reflect the evolving nature of Netflix’s content offerings.

Individual entries will get more tags, notifying users about shows and movies that have won awards, topped Netflix’s viewership rankings, or recently arrived on the platform. That level of information will be particularly useful for live events, since users will be able to easily discover start times and event updates as they happen.

“Our redesigned TV homepage is simpler, more intuitive and better represents the breadth of entertainment on Netflix today,” Kim said. “It’s better at the most important thing, which is helping our members easily find shows, movies, live events, and games that they’ll love.”

Netflix’s recommendation system has long been lauded for its power, but despite the depth of the platform’s algorithm, many subscribers still struggle to settle on their next watch. The image of a viewer aimlessly scrolling through a litany of uninspiring options has become the stuff of sketch comedy bits. Kim noted that Netflix responded to feedback by focusing its new design around four principles, which she summed up with the acronym FIRE: Netflix’s new look is meant to be flexible, inclusive, responsive, and elevated.

That sounds good for Netflix’s TV-based consumers, but what about the increasing number of customers who enjoy the subscription service via their mobile devices? That’s where the new TikTok-style feed comes in.

In an endless vertical array, Netflix will show clips from vaunted originals like Bridgerton and Squid Game. In doing so, it will promote its content library to its subscribers, but it will also keep pace with other platforms that dispense short-form film and TV clips. On YouTube Shorts, for example, some of the most popular channels are glorified Squid Game meme accounts. It’s understandable for Netflix to covet a piece of that audience.

Netflix previously took on the likes of TikTok with short-form collections like “Fast Laughs” and “Kids Clips.” It also targeted TikTok communities by distributing documentaries that examine the app’s culture. This effort, however, feels like a more concerted attempt to bring TikTok’s signature layout to Netflix. The streamer needs to keep up as its rivals make deeper inroads among younger generations. An appeal to TikTok-style browsing is part of that plan.

Kim noted that Netflix will start testing its vertical video feed “in the coming weeks.” In the meantime, a full rundown of the coming updates can be found on the Netflix blog.

Filed under: Articles, Featured, Homepage Feature, Netflix, News by Sam Gutelle
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In February 2025, YouTube turned 20. The video site has gone through a lot over the past two decades, including an acquisition, an earnings glow-up, and multiple generations of star creators. In our 20 Years of YouTube series, we’ll examine the uploads, trends, and influencers that have defined the world’s favorite video site — one year at a time. Click here for a full archive of the series.

On August 13, 2007, iJustine posted a minute-long clip that vaulted her to a higher tier of internet stardom. But to her, it was just “another day, another video.”

That’s how Pittsburgh native Justine Ezarik describes the origins of the “300-page iPhone bill,” a vlog that found the perfect audience at the perfect time. Ezarik’s complaint about AT&T‘s wasteful mailers ultimately had an impact beyond its 3.8 million YouTube views. It showed that the profession then known as “lifecasting” could have considerable cultural sway.

In an email to Tubefilter, Ezarik described her breakout hit as a “perfect storm.” It arrived at the peak of iPhone mania, when consumers couldn’t wait to get their hands on the first generation of Apple’s now-ubiquitous smartphone. The absurdity of a 300-page phone bill made the vlog “a perfect shareable video,” according to Ezarik. Her clever use of editing techniques and background music identified her as a creator to watch.

Even before she shared her iPhone bill with the masses, Ezarik was already on her way toward becoming an online video pioneer. She was one of the first users to go live on Twitch precursor Justin.tv, and she also found audiences on bygone platforms like Revver and Yahoo.

With her response to AT&T’s excessive packaging, she authored a breakthrough for herself. She told Tubefilter that the 300-page iPhone bill “gave me some proof to show people the power of the internet, even if they didn’t believe me at the time.”

That power can be seen in the video’s mix of personality and creativity. The woman known as iJustine took a relatable scenario and presented it in an eye-catching format. The vlog was one of the first YouTube videos to affect significant change thanks to a groundswell of popular support. Ezarik’s “favorite response” to the clip was AT&T’s decision to eliminate its bulky bills in the wake of her viral sensation. “Even though it was such a simple video, it portrayed the absurdity of sending that many pages when it could have been an email,” she said.

Ezarik, who was part of the vanguard of online video stars, exemplified the cultural shift facilitated by platforms like YouTube. Older hosting sites like Newgrounds and Albino Blacksheep tended to emphasize videos themselves rather than the creators behind the content. For Millennials, animated hits like “Charlie the Unicorn” and “End of Ze World” are more recognizable than their uploaders (Jason Steele and Jason Windsor, respectively).

On YouTube, creators took center stage. Without Ezarik’s affable personality attached to it, would the 300-page iPhone bill vlog have taken off in the same way?

It’s hard to say for sure, but since 2007, Ezarik has proven that she’s far more than just a one-hit wonder. Nearly 20 years after launching her YouTube channel, she’s still reviewing the latest tech for an audience of more than seven million subscribers. She has also started uploading to YouTube Shorts, where her witty editing choices continue to shine through.

“As a viewer, [Shorts] is my favorite type to consume because it’s quick and to the point! It’s also given a voice and career to so many people who never would have had the opportunity to create without it,” Ezarik told Tubefilter. “As for long-form content, [YouTube] is still the top platform for monetization and my favorite for community building.”

Ezarik’s 19-year YouTube career has allowed her to witness the rise and fall of numerous industry paradigms. She’s outlasted most other first-wave YouTubers, experienced MCNs and NFTs and plenty of acronymic trends in between, and seen first-hand the diversification that platforms like TikTok and Instagram have brought to the creator economy. “It’s definitely difficult to stand out,” she said, “but there are so many creators in various niches that there is someone for everyone to watch now.”

That wasn’t the case when Ezarik first got her start. The internet’s attention was far more focused back then, with fewer creators sharing the screen. It was the perfect environment for a charismatic twentysomething Yinzer to stand out, and with her oversized billing statement, she did exactly that.

The internet culture of that era is unlikely to ever return, but Ezarik doesn’t mind — she no longer chases the high she experienced in those days. “I would say for the first five years after, I felt a lot of pressure to recreate that type of vitality and exposure,” she told Tubefilter. “Now, I know that’s not possible to achieve every single time you post. It’s always hard to predict when a video may do well, but I do know for the most part the type of content that my audience likes, and I always experiment and post fun things when I want.”

Viewers who are old enough to remember what YouTube was like in 2007 may pine for the days when the likes of iJustine, Smosh, and Ryan Higa ruled the platform. Fortunately, that era lives on thanks to the impact it had on future vloggers. Who knows what online video would look like if Ezarik had never told her 300-page story. Her career may have turned out differently — and AT&T customers may have had to deal with far more snail mail along the way.

Filed under: Articles, Featured, Homepage Feature, iJustine, News, YouTube by Sam Gutelle
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Yes Theory is cashing in on a brand that was partially established to power a creator merch line. Selery, an ecommerce company that works with small businesses, has acquired the fulfillment assets from the Fan of a Fan brand.

A press release describes the transaction as a “multi-million dollar asset sale” that will allow Texas-based Selery to scale up its operation on the West Coast. Fan of a Fan’s three warehouse facilities and its proprietary logistics stack will be used to build out a fulfillment center in Ontario, California. That location is expected to open its doors this month.

Beyond its fulfillment capabilities, Fan of a Fan also encompasses a wide array of creator services. Post-sale, the brand co-founded by Yes Theory, business partner Zack Honarvar, and Fan of a Fan CEO Ryan Westberg will continue to operate as an agency that works with big-name videomakers to build brands from the ground up. Westberg will retain his CEO role, joining Selery’s C-suite.

“This sale is the result of eight years of discipline,” Westberg said in a statement. “No funding rounds. No shortcuts. Just building brick by brick. I’m proud of the fulfillment team we built, and even more excited to help our clients grow even faster as they now have more support with their fulfillment and logistics.”

Westberg’s statement reflects the bootstrapping journey that brought Fan of a Fan into existence. Yes Theory, known for its adventurous videos, broke out during the tail end of the 2010s. Fan of a Fan initially facilitated the rollout of Seek Discomfort, a merch brand that expresses Yes Theory’s bold, positive vision.

What happened next showed that creator-oriented brand-building services were in high demand. Fan of a Fan built a client roster that included the likes of Colin & Samir, Airrack, and Channel 5 with Andrew Callaghan. The current and upcoming Fan of a Fan apparel brands will be able to take advantage of Selery’s “supercharged” fulfillment network.

The success story that is Fan of a Fan bodes well for future firms incubated by Yes Theory and its cohort. Honarvar, a manager who also reps Airrack, has developed a keen eye for brand-building opportunities. His recent work includes a fintech startup called Boring Stuff, which handles taxes and other bits of red tape on behalf of creator clients.

Building a business from scratch and turning it into an acquisition target is impressive, but Yes Theory and Honarvar are not settling there. Now that Fan of a Fan’s operations have been streamlined, it will be a company to watch in the creator economy.

Filed under: Articles, Featured, Homepage Feature, News by Sam Gutelle
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