Blockchain for Content Creation: YouTube is Outdated
2021 will be the year that many of us in the Blockchain, Technology, and Cryptocurrency Industries will remember as the year tokenomics went mainstream. Non-fungible tokens (NFTs) are discussed on entertainment podcasts, my friend’s grandmother has an Ethereum wallet, Theta TV is livestreaming Lionsgate films, and transparency through blockchain is giving the power back to creators, innovators, artists, and entrepreneurs.
So where does YouTube come in to this new wave of transparency, creation, and tokenomics? Well, frankly it doesn’t. The outdated protocol of creators uploading content to YouTube, monetizing videos with small percentages of payouts, selling their films on YouTube or Vimeo for a fee, or getting no monetary value from their time and efforts is coming to an end. The new kid in town is disrupting the model in a way that benefits both creators and viewers. GazeTV is “an innovative social entertainment platform with built-in incentives and reward functions, empowering content creators and audiences to interact, support and grow with each other like never before!”
As a documentary filmmaker I have been frustrated by the distribution process with independent films. As a creator I have put hours into filming and editing video content only for it to be lost in the YouTube algorithm. I have had some success with Theta.tv for streaming (though it is still very gaming focused), spent time on Odysee (same team behind LBRY), and have vetted many of the new video platforms built on the chain. These platforms are all navigating uncharted waters, so innovation, adaptability, and transparency are key.
After engaging with the beta phase of GazeTV, I have been uploading content on the now public platform. Their tagline is “every second counts” which means that every second you upload content you are rewarded in GAZE tokens. The current rate is 0.1 GAZE token per second of your video upload. If you share a 5 minute video to your GazeTV channel, then your reward would be 30 tokens. The platform also rewards for watching, liking, commenting, and sharing videos. The rate for engagement is .25 Gaze tokens, so engagement is a key part to the ecosystem.
There is also the option to set a price for your content. I have set my feature-length documentary at 3 GAZE for a few reasons. One reason is to protect my film from piracy and embedding. By setting a price you can see the transactions on the blockchain, and track which users have paid and watched your film. That allows for me to track and follow my film in case of copyright infringements. Another reason I set a price for The Connected Cup documentary is because it is another avenue to invest in my career. Gaze tokens are worth about 1–2 cents right now, but as the price rate increases so does my revenue of the film.
https://www.gazetv.com/api/link?Code=44e69bf3cb919ebd886a601dc16def1e
Since GAZE TV is an ERC-20 token, you can add your ETH address to your reward center and swap GAZE for ETH. The swap rate as of today is 1 ETH >> 831,314 GAZE. I don’t recommend swapping just yet. I would recommend uploading content while the .1 GAZE reward is in effect (it will decrease naturally as the pool increases) and interact with content to recieve rewards. Keep your balance in your GAZE wallet and be an early adapter to the new wave of content creation/viewing.
You can view my channel here: https://www.gazetv.com/#channel/1aa5b7d76e29fc93118f8f73b91c497c
