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Patreon (, ) is a monetization platform operated by Patreon, Inc., that provides business tools for content creators to run a
subscription service The subscription business model is a business model in which a customer must pay a recurring price at regular intervals for access to a Product (business), product or Service (business), service. The model Publication by subscription, was pioneer ...
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,
videographer Videography involves capturing moving images on electronic media (such as: videotape, direct to disk recording, or solid state storage), and can include streaming media. It encompasses both video production and post-production methods. Histori ...
s,
webcomic Webcomics (also known as online comics or Internet comics) are comics published on the internet, such as on a website or a mobile app. While many webcomics are published exclusively online, others are also published in magazines, newspapers, or ...
artists,
video game developers A video game developer is a software developer specializing in video game development – the process and related disciplines of creating video games. A game developer can range from one person who undertakes all tasks to a large business with em ...
,
podcast A podcast is a Radio program, program made available in digital format for download over the Internet. Typically, a podcast is an Episode, episodic series of digital audio Computer file, files that users can download to a personal device or str ...
ers, 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 Patronage is the support, encouragement, privilege, or financial aid that an organization or individual bestows on another. In the history of art, art patronage refers to the support that princes, popes, and other wealthy and influential people ...
, on a recurring basis or per work of art. The company is based in
San Francisco San Francisco, officially the City and County of San Francisco, is a commercial, Financial District, San Francisco, financial, and Culture of San Francisco, cultural center of Northern California. With a population of 827,526 residents as of ...
.


History

Patreon, Inc., was co-founded in May 2013 by developer Sam Yam and musician
Jack Conte Jack Conte (; born July 12, 1984) is an American musician and co-founder and CEO of Patreon. He and his wife Nataly Dawn comprise the musical duo Pomplamoose, and he is co-leader of the band Scary Pockets and founder of the band Magaziine. Car ...
, who was looking for a way to make a living from his YouTube videos. It developed a platform that allowed 'patrons' to pay a set amount of money every time an artist created a work of art. The company raised $2.1 million in August 2013 from a group of
venture capital Venture capital (VC) is a form of private equity financing provided by firms or funds to start-up company, startup, early-stage, and emerging companies, that have been deemed to have high growth potential or that have demonstrated high growth in ...
ists and
angel investor An angel investor (also known as a business angel, informal investor, angel funder, private investor, or seed investor) is an individual who provides capital to a business or businesses, including startups, usually in exchange for convertible de ...
s. In June 2014, Patreon raised a further $15 million in a
series A round A series A is the name typically given to a company's first significant round of venture capital financing. It can be followed by the word round, investment or financing. The name refers to the class of preferred stock sold to investors in excha ...
led by
Danny Rimer Danny Rimer OBE (born 1970) is a partner at Index Ventures, a global venture capital firm founded in Geneva in 1992. Rimer opened the firm's London office in 2002 and its San Francisco office in 2012. He has become a leading voice on venture capit ...
of
Index Ventures Index Ventures is a European venture capital firm with headquarters in both San Francisco and London. It invests primarily in tech companies. History Index Ventures has its origins in a Switzerland, Swiss bond (finance), bond-trading firm cal ...
. In January 2016, the company closed on a fresh round of $30 million in a
series B round A venture round is a type of funding round used for venture capital financing, by which startup companies obtain investment, generally from venture capitalists and other institutional investors. The availability of venture funding is among the p ...
, led by
Thrive Capital Thrive Capital Management, LLC, commonly Thrive Capital, is an American venture capital firm based in New York City. It focuses on software and internet investments. The firm was founded by Joshua Kushner who is also co-founder of Oscar Health ...
, which put the total raised for Patreon at $47.1 million. 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 The Green brothers, John Green, John (born 1977) and Hank Green, Hank (born 1980), are two American entrepreneurs, social activists, authors, and YouTube vloggers. The two have collaborated extensively throughout their public careers, beginning ...
, and absorbed Subbable creators' pages and content. Notably
CGP Grey CGP Grey is an American educational entertainment, educational YouTuber, podcaster, and Online streamer, live streamer based in the United Kingdom who creates explanatory videos on subjects including politics, geography, economics, sociology, h ...
,
Destin Sandlin Destin Wilson Sandlin (born September 17, 1981) is an American engineer and science communicator who produces the video series ''Smarter Every Day'' on his YouTube channel of the same name, which was launched in 2007. Sandlin also runs the YouTu ...
's ''Smarter Every Day'', and the Green brothers' own ''
CrashCourse ''Crash Course'' (sometimes stylized as ''CrashCourse'') is an educational YouTube channel started by John Green and Hank Green (collectively the Green brothers), who became known on YouTube through their ''Vlogbrothers'' channel. ''Crash Course ...
'' and ''
SciShow ''SciShow'' is a collection of YouTube channels that focuses on science news. The program is hosted by Hank Green along with a rotating cast of co-hosts. ''SciShow'' was launched as an YouTube Original Channel Initiative, original channel. The ...
'' channels. The merger was consequent to an expected migration of payment systems with
Amazon Payments Amazon Pay is an online payments processing service owned by Amazon. Launched in 2007, Amazon Pay uses the consumer base of Amazon.com and focuses on giving users the option to pay with their Amazon accounts on external merchant websites. As of ...
that Subbable used. In October 2015, the site was the target of a large
cyber-attack A cyberattack (or cyber attack) occurs when there is an unauthorized action against computer infrastructure that compromises the CIA triad, confidentiality, integrity, or availability of its content. The rising dependence on increasingly comple ...
, 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
cryptocurrencies A cryptocurrency (colloquially crypto) is a digital currency designed to work through a computer network that is not reliant on any central authority, such as a government or bank, to uphold or maintain it. Individual coin ownership records ...
and
NFT A non-fungible token (NFT) is a unique digital identifier that is recorded on a blockchain and is used to certify ownership and authenticity. It cannot be copied, substituted, or subdivided. The ownership of an NFT is recorded in the blockchai ...
s 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.


Business model

Patreon users are grouped by content type, such as video/films,
podcast A podcast is a Radio program, program made available in digital format for download over the Internet. Typically, a podcast is an Episode, episodic series of digital audio Computer file, files that users can download to a personal device or str ...
,
comedy Comedy is a genre of dramatic works intended to be humorous or amusing by inducing laughter, especially in theatre, film, stand-up comedy, television, radio, books, or any other entertainment medium. Origins Comedy originated in ancient Greec ...
,
comics a Media (communication), medium used to express ideas with images, often combined with text or other visual information. It typically the form of a sequence of Panel (comics), panels of images. Textual devices such as speech balloons, Glo ...
, games, and education. These content creators set up a page on the Patreon website, where patrons can choose to pay a fixed amount to a creator on a monthly basis. Alternatively, content creators can configure their page so that patrons pay every time the artist releases a new piece of art. A creator typically displays a goal that the ongoing revenue will go towards, and can set a maximum limit of how much they receive per month. Patrons can cancel their payment at any time. Creators typically provide membership benefits (commonly in the form of exclusive content or behind-the-scenes work) for their patrons, depending on the amount that each patron pays. 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 In-Commission or commissioning may refer to: Business and contracting * Commission (remuneration), a form of payment to an agent for services rendered ** Commission (art), the purchase or the creation of a piece of art most often on behalf of anot ...
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 A podcast is a program made available in digital format for download over the Internet. Typically, a podcast is an episodic series of digital audio files that users can download to a personal device or stream to listen to at a time of their ...
, 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.


Changes in content guidelines and terms of service

In December 2017, Patreon announced a service fee starting on December 18, 2017, where some fees would be charged to the patrons rather than all fees being paid by the creator. This caused a backlash from several creators, including some who saw members of their fanbase withdraw small pledges in response. Under the new payment model, a $1 pledge would have cost a patron $1.38, and a $5 pledge would have cost $5.50, representing a 38% and 10% rise respectively. Due to this backlash and the loss of many pledges for creators, Patreon announced that it would not be rolling out these changes, and apologized to its users.


Bans and restrictions

Unlike other online platforms such as
YouTube YouTube is an American social media and online video sharing platform owned by Google. YouTube was founded on February 14, 2005, by Steve Chen, Chad Hurley, and Jawed Karim who were three former employees of PayPal. Headquartered in ...
and
Facebook Facebook is a social media and social networking service owned by the American technology conglomerate Meta Platforms, Meta. Created in 2004 by Mark Zuckerberg with four other Harvard College students and roommates, Eduardo Saverin, Andre ...
, which use trained algorithms to identify potentially inappropriate content, Patreon's trust and safety team monitors users and investigates complaints of Terms of Service violations.


Specific users

In July 2017, right-wing YouTube personality
Lauren Southern Lauren Cherie Southern (born 16 June 1995) is a Canadian alt-right YouTuber and political activist. In 2015, she ran as a Libertarian Party of Canada, Libertarian Party candidate in the 2015 Canadian federal election, Canadian federal election ...
was banned from Patreon over concerns about Génération Identitaire's blocking of
NGO A non-governmental organization (NGO) is an independent, typically nonprofit organization that operates outside government control, though it may get a significant percentage of its funding from government or corporate sources. NGOs often focus ...
ships in the Mediterranean, ferrying migrants to Europe off the Libyan coast. A letter she received from Patreon said she was removed for "raising funds in order to take part in activities that are likely to cause loss of life," referring to an incident in May involving Southern, and the larger Defend Europe mission in July, which she covered on YouTube. Philosopher, writer, and podcast host
Sam Harris Samuel Benjamin Harris (born April 9, 1967) is an American philosopher, neuroscientist, author, and podcast host. His work touches on a range of topics, including rationality, religion, ethics, free will, determinism, neuroscience, meditation ...
, who also received contributions from patrons on the website, objected to Patreon's approach and announced that he would be leaving the platform because of it. Shortly thereafter Patreon deleted the account of '' It's Going Down'', a far-left news website, for allegedly
doxing Doxing or doxxing is the act of publicly providing personally identifiable information Personal data, also known as personal information or personally identifiable information (PII), is any information related to an identifiable person. The ...
. 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 s 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 Milo Yiannopoulos (; ''né'' Hanrahan; born 18 October 1984) is a British far-right political commentator. His speeches and writings criticise Islam, feminism, and social justice. Yiannopoulos is a former editor of ''Breitbart News'', an Americ ...
a day after he created an account and also banned
Carl Benjamin Carl Charles Benjamin (born September 1979), also known by his online pseudonym Sargon of Akkad, is a British right-wing YouTuber and political commentator. A former member of the Eurosceptic UK Independence Party (UKIP), he was one of its uns ...
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 Samuel Benjamin Harris (born April 9, 1967) is an American philosopher, neuroscientist, author, and podcast host. His work touches on a range of topics, including rationality, religion, ethics, free will, determinism, neuroscience, meditation ...
and some
American libertarians In the United States, libertarianism is a political philosophy promoting individual liberty. According to common meanings of Conservatism in the United States, conservatism and Modern liberalism in the United States, liberalism in the United S ...
, who have accused it of being politically motivated. Furthermore,
Jordan Peterson Jordan Bernt Peterson (born 12 June 1962) is a Canadian psychologist, author, and media commentator. He received widespread attention in the late 2010s for his views on cultural and political issues. Often described as Conservatism, conservativ ...
announced a plan to launch an alternative service that will be safe from political interference, and jointly announced with
Dave Rubin David Joshua Rubin (born June 26, 1976) is an American conservative political commentator. He is the creator and host of ''The Rubin Report'', a political talk show on YouTube and on the network BlazeTV. Launched in 2013, his show was origina ...
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 Owen Smith, known professionally as Owen Benjamin, is an American conspiracy theorist and internet personality known for promoting white supremacy, anti-Black racism, antisemitism, homophobia, and transphobia. According to the Anti-Defamat ...
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 An injunction is an equitable remedy in the form of a special court order compelling a party to do or refrain from doing certain acts. It was developed by the English courts of equity but its origins go back to Roman law and the equitable rem ...
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.


Russian invasion of Ukraine

During the
2022 Russian invasion of Ukraine On 24 February 2022, , starting the largest and deadliest war in Europe since World War II, in a major escalation of the Russo-Ukrainian War, conflict between the two countries which began in 2014. The fighting has caused hundreds of thou ...
, Patreon maintained its business in Russia despite international pressure on western companies operating in Russia to cease operating there. At the beginning of the Russian invasion of Ukraine, Patreon closed a major Ukrainian account run by a charity named Comeback Alive, which raised money for helping volunteers and veteran divisions due to its financing and training of military personnel. On February 15, 2024, Patreon deleted the account of Artur Rehi, an
Estonian Estonian may refer to: * Something of, from, or related to Estonia, a country in the Baltic region in northern Europe * Estonians, people from Estonia, or of Estonian descent * Estonian language * Estonian cuisine * Estonian culture See also

...
military A military, also known collectively as armed forces, is a heavily armed, highly organized force primarily intended for warfare. Militaries are typically authorized and maintained by a sovereign state, with their members identifiable by a d ...
video blogger A vlog (), also known as a video blog or video log, is a form of blog for which the medium is video. Vlog entries often combine embedded video (or a video link) with supporting text, images, and other metadata. Entries can be recorded in one ta ...
. Patreon stated "hate speech" as one of the reasons for the deletion, due to Rehi's reference to the Russians in occupied Ukraine as "Occupiers". The other reason was "funding military", despite Rehi's funneling of all donations through
Rotary Club Rotary International is one of the largest Service club, service organizations in the world. The self-declared mission of Rotary, as stated on its website, is to "provide service to others, promote integrity, and advance world understanding, go ...
.


Adult content

In March 2014, Patreon announced via email that creators of sexual content on its platform would no longer be allowed to use
PayPal PayPal Holdings, Inc. is an American multinational financial technology company operating an online payments system in the majority of countries that support E-commerce payment system, online money transfers; it serves as an electronic alter ...
services through Patreon to fulfill subscription payments. In July 2016, Patreon emailed its content creators announcing that payments through PayPal would resume for adult-oriented creators. Those who worked within the "
Not Safe For Work Not safe for work, also called not suitable for work (NSFW), is Internet slang or shorthand used to mark links to content, videos, or website pages the viewer may not wish to be seen viewing in a public, formal, or controlled environment. The ...
" categories on Patreon could accept payments through PayPal via PayPal's subsidiary Braintree. In October 2017, Patreon reverted its stance on NSFW content, introducing new restrictions. It published an expanded version of the community guidelines with a broader definition of sexual content, triggering a backlash from some adult content creators. A petition in protest of the changes gathered 1,800 signatures, which drew a response from Jack Conte. In June 2018, Patreon suspended some creators who produced adult content.


CSAM

Since its inception, Patreon has been widely criticized for its approach on handling and removing
child sexual abuse material Child pornography (also abbreviated as CP, also called child porn or kiddie porn, and child sexual abuse material, known by the acronym CSAM (underscoring that children can not be deemed willing participants under law)), is erotic material that ...
either drawn, photographed, or filmed. In March 2018, a petition that gathered nearly 37,000 signatures demanded that the company prohibit animators and artists from selling content depicting child rape. 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 Prague ( ; ) is the capital and List of cities and towns in the Czech Republic, largest city of the Czech Republic and the historical capital of Bohemia. Prague, located on the Vltava River, has a population of about 1.4 million, while its P ...
, 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 The British Broadcasting Corporation (BBC) is a British public service broadcaster headquartered at Broadcasting House in London, England. Originally established in 1922 as the British Broadcasting Company, it evolved into its current sta ...
discovered AI-generated sexual abuse images of children for sale on the website. Patreon eventually removed the accounts in question.


Other

In 2018, Patreon was accused of cracking down on
ASMR An autonomous sensory meridian response (ASMR)Marsden, Rhodri (20 July 2012), ''The Independent''. is a tingling sensation that usually begins on the scalp and moves down the back of the neck and upper spine. A pleasant form of paresthesia, it ...
(autonomous sensory meridian response) videos. On October 24, 2020, Patreon announced that it would ban all accounts "that advance disinformation promoting the
QAnon QAnon ( ) is a far-right conspiracy theories in United States politics, American political conspiracy theory and political movement that originated in 2017. QAnon centers on fabricated claims made by an anonymous individual or individuals kno ...
conspiracy theory".


See also

* * *


References


External links

* {{Crowdfunding platforms 2013 establishments in California American companies established in 2013 Companies based in San Francisco Crowdfunding platforms of the United States Financial services companies established in 2013 Internet properties established in 2013 Subscription services