Product Code Database
Patreon (, ) is a monetization platform operated by Patreon, Inc., that provides business tools for content creators to run a subscription service and sell digital products. It helps artists and other creators earn a recurring income by providing rewards and perks to its subscribers. Patreon charges a commission of 8 to 12 percent of creators' monthly income, in addition to payment processing fees.
Patreon is used by writers, , webcomic artists, video game developers, , musicians, adult content creators, and other kinds of creators who post regularly online. It allows artists to receive funding directly from their fans, or patrons, on a recurring basis or per work of art. The California Report.org: "Creating Patrons of the Arts Through Crowdfunding" July 11–13, 2014. The company is based in San Francisco. Patreon.org: Intro Accessed July 14, 2014
It signed up more than 125,000 "patrons" in its first 18 months. In late 2014, the website announced that patrons were sending over $1,000,000 per month to the site's content creators.
In March 2015, Patreon acquired Subbable, a similar voluntary subscription service created by the Green brothers, and absorbed Subbable creators' pages and content. Notably CGP Grey, Destin Sandlin's Smarter Every Day, and the Green brothers' own CrashCourse and SciShow channels. The merger was consequent to an expected migration of payment systems with Amazon Payments that Subbable used.
In October 2015, the site was the target of a large cyber-attack, with almost 15 gigabytes of password data, donation records, and source code taken and published. The breach exposed more than 2.3 million unique e-mail addresses and millions of private messages. Following the attack, some patrons received extortion emails demanding Bitcoin payments in exchange for the protection of their personal information.
In January 2017, Patreon announced that it had sent over $100,000,000 to creators since its inception.
In May 2017, Patreon announced that it had over 50,000 active creators and 1 million monthly patrons, and was on track to send over $150 million to creators in 2017. In June 2017, Patreon announced a suite of tools for creators to run membership businesses on the Patreon platform. Notable improvements included a customer relationship management system, a mobile app called Lens, and a service to set up exclusive livestreams.
In August 2018, Patreon announced the acquisition of Memberful, a membership services company.
In April 2020, citing the COVID-19 pandemic as a means of financial difficulty for the economy, the company laid off 30 employees or 13% of its workforce at the time. In April 2021, the company laid off 36 employees or 13% of its workforce despite reporting recent growth. In October 2021, Patreon confirmed it was looking into implementing Cryptocurrency and NFTs after creators expressed interests in having the opportunity to offer exclusive memberships and benefits to its patrons through a coin or token.
In March 2022, Patreon announced that it had more than 250,000 creators who were using the platform, and there were more than eight million active patrons from more than 200 countries.
In September 2022, Patreon announced it was laying off 80 people, representing about 17% of its staff. As part of the layoffs, the company also announced that it would be closing its Dublin and Berlin offices.
In October 2023, Patreon announced a full redesign of its interface and brand identity, including new features like community chats. Patreon also announced the acquisition of Moment, a ticketed live streaming platform.
Patrons can unlock monetary tiers that increase the content type they see from the user. Several content creators on Patreon are also YouTubers. They can create content on multiple platforms, and while the YouTube videos may be available to the public, the patrons receive private content made exclusively for them in exchange for aiding the Patreon user's goal. Patreon takes a 8-12% commission on pledges. , the average pledge per patron was around $12, and a new patron pledged to a creator every 5.5 seconds.
, the four most popular content categories are videos, podcasts, music, and gaming, which collectively make up about half of all Patreon profiles. A quarter of the artists on Patreon produce videos, while podcasts, music, and gaming represent about 7% each.
, Patreon's Community Guidelines allow nudity and suggestive imagery as long as the page is categorized as Adult/18+, with the condition that all works must feature adults who demonstrate consent.
In June 2025, Patreon announced a change to its pricing structure, charging creators 10% of their earnings.
In September 2018, Patreon banned Turkish journalist-in-exile Kamil Maman after Turkey threatened to block the entire site in Turkey if the company did not comply. In an e-mail sent to Maman, Patreon said "This was not an easy decision for us, as we are huge proponents of free speech, but it was a decision we made in order to best protect access to Turkish creators." Maman condemned Patreon for giving in to the demands of an autocratic regime.
In December 2018, Patreon banned Milo Yiannopoulos a day after he created an account and also banned Carl Benjamin because he used homophobic and racist slurs in a YouTube interview in February 2018. Benjamin said that Patreon had taken his words out of context and that "the video in question should not fall under Patreon's rules because it was on YouTube."
This ban was criticized by Sam Harris and some American libertarians, who have accused it of being politically motivated. Furthermore, Jordan Peterson announced a plan to launch an alternative service that will be safe from political interference, and jointly announced with Dave Rubin in a January 1, 2019, video that they will be leaving Patreon by January 15, 2019, as a direct response to its treatment of Carl Benjamin and has since effected that change.
Patreon banned comedian Owen Benjamin following alleged hate speech. Benjamin filed an arbitration claim for $2.2 million (later upped to $3.5 million) and told fans to file identical claims against Patreon as required by the Terms of Use in an attempt to pressure them into a settlement. Benjamin said that the suit(s) had a basis due to a disrupted economic relationship. Patreon launched a counter-suit against 72 individuals who filed arbitration claims and sought a preliminary injunction to stay all arbitration proceedings pending the outcome of its counter-suit. The injunction was denied, meaning that Patreon may be required to prefund the arbitration claims against itself up to $10,000 per claim. Patreon had previously changed its terms of service on January 1, 2020, to end the conditions under which the suits attempted by Benjamin's supporters (but not himself) occurred, as the lawsuits were filed on January 6. The terms-of-service update stated that only the person banned from the platform would be allowed to file a complaint and that any arbitration fees would have to be paid by the person or entity filing the complaint. The suits open the door to lawsuits from supporters of other Patreon users banned from the platform, with freelance journalist Lauren Southern preparing her suit.
In August 2021, an Australian news agency reported that Patreon was hosting sexual content of children under 18 filmed in a psychiatric hospital in Prague, Czech Republic. In May 2022, social media influencer Michael McWhorter said he found sexually provocative pictures and videos of pre-pubescent children on Patreon categorized as NSFW and requiring the customer to be 18 years or older to view or purchase such content. In September 2022, following the laying off of several members of the Patreon security team, McWhorter published a follow-up video featuring a testimony from another user that she had reported CSAM she found to Patreon staff and it simply dismissed any concerns. Patreon rejected the statements, dismissing them as "dangerous and conspiratorial disinformation".
In March 2023, Patreon announced its partnership with Tech Coalition, an internet agency with aims to combat child sexual exploitation and online child abuse. A few months later in June 2023, an investigation by the BBC discovered AI-generated sexual abuse images of children for sale on the website. Patreon eventually removed the accounts in question.
|
|
