It used to be the case that production teams were responsible for everything we watched on television, and unless you were employed by the TV industry you rarely had the opportunity to be part of the stories being told.  

Whereas we may once have previously been passive consumers of TV, thanks to the internet and social media we can now be active participants.  Not only are we watching video on social media channels such as YouTube, Facebook Watch, IGTV and so on, but we are also making it ourselves.

Today literally everyone is, or can be, a content creator.  The creator economy is worth in excess of $100 billion, and creators are building huge audiences and generating huge incomes from their channel memberships and subscriptions.

We’re not just talking multichannel networks here; the creator economy boom is rebalancing the creator business.  It is empowering individual video creators to become superstars and entire new businesses are being built around them.  

Decentralisation and democratisation

Perhaps the biggest impact however is how the growth of the creator economy is shifting the traditional entertainment industry.  

Where once our viewing hours were spent watching scheduled TV, the democratisation of content and the creator economy ecosystem is pushing viewing habits in a non-linear direction, and as such is redefining the development and creation of programming.  A new future of TV is emerging where literally anyone can produce and broadcast themselves to the world.

Creators are making content for, and being picked up by, subscription streaming services such as Netflix and Roku, you only have to take a look at the success of Tinder Swindler to see raw authentic value user-generated video brings to documentaries, and its power to attract huge and diverse audiences. Similarly, OTT services reach out to creators leveraging the inherent creator economy opportunity to jump on trends and find new talent to connect with audiences.  Similarly, an emerging genre of creator-owned streaming channels is also on the ascendancy.   Channels such as Nebular and Streamfire are stealing a march on traditional broadcast and network audiences.

While the creator economy will likely never fully replace TV, in 2022 it’s a certain that creators will remain at the epicentre of the entertainment industry and social video platforms will continue to steal audiences away from mainstream entertainment.  Gen Z and Gen Alpha in particular are cutting themselves off from traditional media, and if networks and broadcasters want to remain relevant, they need to adapt and support their rise.  

The freshest new programmes are now being made using user-generated video

Keeping pace with creators means producers must deliver more and deliver it faster.

User-generated video (UGV) provides production teams with the ability to collect and share the vast quantity of content needed to make unique programmes that attract and retain audiences, whilst at the same time tapping into the growing desire to be entertained and inspired with authentic storytelling on the go. 

Newsflare is the home of production-ready UGV

Newsflare invites production teams everywhere to join us in celebrating the variety of stories captured by creators everywhere:  We offer:

• The world’s largest user-generated video vault alive with diverse, emotionally powerful content and fresh ideas that will resonate deeply with TV buyers and commissioners
  
  
• A 45,000+ global membership of filmers constantly capturing life as it happens
  
  
• Amazing stories that might otherwise never be told – the bizarre, the fantastic, the quirky and even the downright brutal 
  
  
• Licensed, ready to use content so you can get your show into production faster
  
  
• Crowdsourced content for bespoke needs 
  
  

Take a look at our practical guide for producers looking to get started UGV. Or get in touch with a member of our production team and we can help you get started.