Hey Creatorverse readers,
After 13 years of waiting, fans finally got a first look at Grand Theft Auto VI, a title that’s shaping up to be one of the most highly anticipated video games of all time as well as one of the most profitable pieces of media of the year. While a huge amount of fans watched the extended look on Netflix, the conversation primarily happened on YouTube, illustrating just how much media consumption has changed in the past decade.
Netflix released Grand Theft Auto VI: An Extended Look last Thursday and was the exclusive home for the footage for a day. This first look was a massive success for Netflix as the title became the most-watched show or movie on the platform for the week, scoring 31.1 million Netflix views. The extended look also hit No. 1 on the most watched list in 87 of the 93 countries tracked globally.
When the extended look became available on YouTube, it didn’t seem to perform as well as it did on Netflix. The official Rockstar Games account shows 18 million views for the video even though YouTube now counts a view as soon as a video starts playing (By contrast, Netflix counts a view as one full-runtime equivalent of watch time).
The exclusive also resulted in a 24% increase in Netflix app downloads, according to data from market intelligence firm Sensor Tower. So many people were watching the footage that Netflix actually crashed. The last time Netflix has streaming issues like that was during its Christmas NFL games in December.
But while many people’s first look was on Netflix, the excitement and engagement around the game mostly happened on YouTube. Reaction videos from creators Penguinz0, Kai Cenat and IShowSpeed resulted in 9.8 million views in total. A breakdown of the trailer from Gameranx has been viewed 4.3 million times. That’s just counting the YouTube views in the multi-millions. There are dozens of creators with GTA VI reaction and breakdown videos that range from thousands of views to over a million views.
It’s a gaming experiment that’s surely left Netflix happy. This isn’t the first time the streamer has partnered with the GTA franchise. For a while, Netflix subscribers were able to play GTA III, Vice City and San Andreas on their mobile devices. The success also comes as Netflix continues to try and fit gaming into its model. But more than anything, the GTA VI release is another point that illustrates how complicated the Netflix and YouTube relationship has become.
There’s been an emerging narrative that there’s a bidding war over talent between Netflix and YouTube. While Netflix has been signing deals with top YouTubers, YouTube has been approaching its creators to keep them on the platform. But — as with everything when it comes to the creator ecosystem — this “war” is more complicated than it seems. For established creators, going to Netflix isn’t a guaranteed level up during a time when the streamer has some degree of ownership over creator originals and it’s uncertain how creator content performs on Netflix. Likewise, staying on YouTube isn’t the obvious answer, especially not for creators looking to expand to an older audience (yep, streaming is for the olds now). I broke down this entire saga this morning.
But as these two companies navigate a new era together, it’s clear they still need each other. Netflix is one of the few streamers or networks that can turn a piece of content into an actual cultural conversation, and more often than not, those conversations are happening on YouTube.
Now onto the rest.
Kayla Cobb
Senior Reporter [email protected]
What’s New
AMC Theatres launches its own indie-focused distribution arm as creators continue to self finance movies
AMC Theatres is capitalizing on the trend of self-financed and self-released movies with Leawood Films, an indie distribution arm that is designed to distribute and market small to mid-sized movies. Taylor Swift and Beyoncé’s concert films were discussed as major inspirations for the launch. However, after the success of truly independent creator movies like Markiplier’s “Iron Lung” as well as Creator Camp and Baron Ryan’s “Two Sleepy People,” more creators have started eyeing theatrical distribution for their latest projects.
Speaking of Markiplier (38.9 million YouTube subscribers), aka Mark Fischbach, the creator caught some attention this week for investing in GoPro. After posting a sponsored review of a new GoPro model, Fischbach became the largest individual shareholder of the company, acquiring a 8.5% stake. Days after that news broke, GoPro was acquired for $285 million by tech company Starman Optical. Fischbach told Philip DeFranco that he had “no idea” about the acquisition ahead of time.
MrBeast’s book with James Patterson is on track to be a “historic bomb” with a $1 million prize
“The Most Dangerous Games” doesn’t look like it’s in great shape. Preorders for the survival thriller were in the four digits with insiders close to the project calling it a “historic bomb,” according to a report from Semafor. But there’s still hope for sales. True to all things related to MrBeast (515 million YouTube subscribers), “The Most Dangerous Games” comes with a real-life contest that encourages readers to find clues hidden in the book. Once the pool of readers has been narrowed to 10 people, they will compete against each other for the chance to win $1 million. Hey, anything that encourages more people to read is a win.
Mark Vins and Ziwe will premiere new content at the Toronto International Film Festival
Host of “Brave Wilderness” Mark Vins (729,000 YouTube subscribers) and host of “You’d Be an Iconic Guest” Ziwe (626,000 subscribers) will be screening new projects at the Toronto International Film Festival as part of the inaugural Creator Festival. Vins will premiere his anticipated feature-length documentary “Reef to Ridge,” and Ziwe will debut two new episodes of her interview series.
Platform Updates
Hank Green launches a creator-focused streaming app for children
I’ve covered at length the headache around children’s media. The most popular content is on YouTube, but parents are scared to give their kids access to the platform. YouTube legend Hank Green is trying to solve this problem with ClockwiseTV, an app designed for children aged eight to 12 years old that focuses on science, technology, education, arts and mathematics content. ClockwiseTV licenses pre-existing YouTube videos from creators and shows them to users without ads. The app is going for $39.99 for its first year.
Instagram unveils new tags for AI-generated accounts
Instagram is cracking down on its AI influencer problem. The platform is changing its “AI creator” label to “AI-generated profile” to make it clearer to users that certain profiles weren’t created by humans. The platform will also be hunting down and penalizing AI-generated accounts that aren’t labeled, meaning their posts won’t be recommended to users that don’t follow them in Reels and Explore.
YouTube adds Amazon products to its U.S. shopping affiliate program
Creators will now be able to tag Amazon products directly on their long content, shortform content and livestreams and make money off of those sales. This is a big change that the platform has been teasing for a while that could lead to a boost in sales for certain creators. Previously, creators were only able to share Amazon affiliate links in their video descriptions.
Movers and Shakers
Unwell Games are coming back for the summer
After launching the “Unwell Winter Games” earlier this year, Alex Cooper returns with “Unwell Summer Games,” which will premiere Sept. 7 on YouTube. This edition of the reality show will feature “Love Island USA” alums Pepe Garcia and Daniela Ortiz, “Love Island UK” alums Dejon Noel-Williams and Jourdan Riane, Jimmy Sotos from “Perfect Match,” Carly Lawrence from “Too Hot to Handle,” the host of the “For the Girls” podcast Becca Moore and creators Blake Gray and Zarah Kelleher. The winter games were a hit, generating over 6.5 million views in the first week
This announcement comes as Cooper and Hulu’s “Love Overboard” came to an end after one season and Cooper has been strengthening her relationship with Netflix. “Let’s Marry Harry” premiered on Netflix’s Top 10 list in 15 countries.
M. Night Shyamalan, Kevin Hart and Ina Garten are now YouTubers
More Hollywood celebrities are embracing YouTube. Director M. Night Shyamalan launched a channel analyzing his movies; comedian Kevin Hart is trying to become a golf creator, and celebrity cook and author Ina Garten launched a new cooking and entertaining show. Also, former NBA player Blake Griffin will be hosting a late night sports talk showwith Prime Video, Wondery and YouTube. The convergence between Hollywood and YouTube is in effect.
Travel creator Drew Binsky comes to Netflix, and Amelia Dimoldenberg is producing for BBC
Netflix is partnering with another major creator. Starting on Sept. 19, a curated collection of Drew Binsky’s (7.34 million YouTube subscribers) library will be available to watch on Netflix, including his latest episode, “Entering The World’s Narrowest Island (100 Feet Wide).” New episodes will drop on Netflix the same day and date they are released on YouTube.
And in other news, Amelia Dimoldenberg (3.44 million YouTube subscribers) is partnering with the BBC to create a new young adult drama inspired by the pop culture sensation “Skins.”
Is this accurate?
Who to Watch
WhopJordan
By now chances are high that you’ve seen those cringe-worthy AI-created shortform shows? You know the ones. You’re scrolling through Reels or TikTok and suddenly an anthropomorphic fruit dad is yelling at his fruit son or a poorly rendered woman is gesturing wildly as she yells at her boyfriend. Well, that fake art is starting to inspire some actually good, human-produced real art, and whopjordan (312,000 TikTok followers) is one of those creators behind this trend. Every post features Jordan and his gaggle of friends brutally mocking how over-the-top those AI-created shows are. If you hate AI taking over creative jobs and love petty takedowns, his account is worth a watch.
Bonus Content
- Meta’s $18 Billion Settlement: A Wake-Up Call for Social Media or the Cost of Doing Business? | Analysis (via TheWrap)
- I Met The Tradwife Who Thinks Women Shouldn’t Vote (via YouTube)
- Sean Fennessey Thinks ‘There’s an Inherent Conflict’ With The Ringer Podcasts Streaming on Netflix (via TheWrap)
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This report provides a weekly deep dive into the creator economy. It highlights key trends, political and technological developments, data points and industry leaders all with the goal of making you smarter about this constantly evolving space.
The post Creatorverse: GTA VI on Netflix Was a Big Success, But the Conversation Was Happening on YouTube appeared first on TheWrap.
