“It’s an algorithmically driven art form,” Kornfeld said. “So much of what you do feels beholden to this mysterious box.”

An elite pursuit

There’s no real “middle class” in the space, Atkins said, with the “top 8-10% of creators controlling most of the money” while many struggle to turn their efforts into sustainable careers. 

As for platforms, they tend to be territorial, which Atkins said works against them and fails to see creators “as business people” who will ultimately gravitate to the areas where they can earn “predictable, consistent revenue.”

Echoing a common gripe, Kornfeld said platforms are generally tight-fisted, which narrows the creator pool.

“Only certain people can take the economic risk to say, ‘I’m OK not being paid well for the next six to 12 months to see if I can give this digital media thing a go,’” said Kornfeld, who advised creators to diversify their income stream. “There are so many wonderful, untapped, talented, incredible artists who could make the platforms better, who could make all our lives better, if only they were given the path to monetization.”

Platforms have often put too much stock in follower numbers, which can seem impressive but don’t give the full engagement picture.

“We cannot confuse reach with passion,” Atkins said. “Having a million TikTok followers, which is an achievement, is not the same thing as having 100,000 YouTube subscribers.” 

Be more like YouTube

Despite the hurdles, panelists said there are reasons to be hopeful about the creatorverse, including AI and other new tech that aims to lighten the burden on creatives and help them become true entrepreneurs.

Companies like Jellysmack are developing tools and infrastructure to help with back-end work, freeing creators to “focus on their superpowers,” Atkins said. At the same time, licensing and redistribution agreements are also adding revenue to creator coffers.

Less like a formal takeaway and more like a plea, both panelists had the following message for platforms: Be more like YouTube, with its favorable 55%/45% revenue split with creators, which Kornfeld called “wild and unprecedented.” (YouTube returned as the title sponsor for VidCon 2023, after having filled that role between 2013 and 2019).

Though YouTube’s system has its flaws, “you cannot deny that they have created a space that’s economically advantageous to them, to advertisers and to creators,” said Atkins, who noted that Facebook has matched the deal. “And over time, as it’s becoming a bigger industry and it matures, others will have to play the game.”