[BLOG] Opinion: Disney Buys Maker Studios

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Digmbot
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Joined: 08 Oct 2013, 18:29

[BLOG] Opinion: Disney Buys Maker Studios

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So, you may have heard the news. Disney has bought Maker Studios, the YouTube powerhouse that hosts stars such as PewDiePie, TotalBiscuit, The Yogscast, iJustine and many more under its subnetworks. Maker Studios generates an average of 5.5 billion views per month, and Disney is reportedly shelling out at least $500 million to acquire the network. Those are the hard numbers. But what does it actually mean?



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[Full disclosure: The author of this piece is also affiliated with YouTube network Fullscreen]



As a creator and network member myself, this is an interesting turn of events. Yes, Disney is a mammoth company. And yes, Maker Studios is without a doubt the largest network on YouTube and has some of the biggest celebrities to be found on the site. But the pairing of the two is a bit concerning in my mind. Disney is primarily known as a family company, though they do own EPSN, A&E and ABC. This potentially raises a conflict, as much of the content created by members of Maker Studios is decidedly NOT family friendly. The main issue I see is whether or not Disney will allow Maker to continue operating more or less independently. If they do, it is unlikely much will change.



However, if Disney does decide to get actively involved in the operations of Maker Studios, then might we see a push towards more family friendly content on those YouTube channels? Perhaps a PewDiePie/Disney Family crossover? The crux of the matter is this: A company with little to no experience and certainly no success in the online video arena has just bought the the largest network in the single largest player for that space. Yes, YouTube is a great way to get views. But as any creator or network executive will tell you, it is NOT a stable way to grow a business money. Maker itself is rumored to have been steadily losing money recently. The big picture here is relatively easy to lay out. Disney attracts kids and teens. YouTube attracts kids and teens. The problem here is that most people go to YouTube for content that is not easily found on television. One possible way for Disney to handle this acquisition is to make Maker a distribution hub for Disney media. But really, do we need to go to a Disney/Maker channel to get our Frozen fix? Of course not. Simply typing "Frozen" in to site's search bar yields pages upon pages of results. Will Disney set Maker up as a way for YouTube stars to make a go of it in "real media"? Again, possible. But would people like PewDiePie or TotalBiscuit even be interested? Yes, Justin Bieber got popular on YouTube. Then he got REALLY popular elsewhere. Then he went crazy. The fact is, most YouTube stars have done better when they remained on YouTube.



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And Disney certainly doesn't need to shoehorn it's own properties into the YouTube universe. The Avengers? Thats a big risk to take with a property by cramming it into a YouTube video. If Disney keeps Maker at arm's length and lets them run the show on their own, then things will probably be fine. I just don't think Disney is capable of doing that. It may be that I am wrong. Or it may be that Disney has just set in motion the slow and inexorable death of YouTube as a medium where anyone can put a video out there and potentially make it big. We could be looking at a future of monster corporations deciding what gets views and what doesn't. And wouldn't that be a shame? Now, if you'll excuse me, I'm going to go publish my latest funny cat montage on my channel....
-Digmbot

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