Creator economy
The creator economy is the market of independent creators who earn from content, and the agencies, brands, platforms and tools that pay them.
Definition
The creator economy covers everyone who earns money from making content independently: YouTubers, TikTokers, streamers, podcasters, musicians and UGC creators. It also covers the businesses that work with them and pay them.
Goldman Sachs Research estimated in April 2023 that the creator economy could grow from about $250 billion to about $480 billion by 2027. It named brand deals, a share of platform ad revenue and direct payments from fans as the main income sources.1
How creators earn
- Brand deals and sponsored content
- Platform revenue share, for example ad revenue2
- Affiliate commissions
- Music streaming royalties
- Subscriptions, memberships and their own products
The businesses behind creators
Agencies manage talent and campaigns, brands run creator programs, labels and publishers handle music rights and platforms pay users for content. Many of them share one task: paying many creators, in many countries, reliably.
As creator income grows, tax authorities pay more attention too. The EU's DAC7 rules make many digital platforms report what their sellers earn.3
How Talentir helps
Talentir is the payout infrastructure for agencies, brands, music labels and platforms. See Talentir for agencies
Further reading
Related topics
Influencer marketing
Influencer marketing is when brands pay creators to promote products to their own audience on social media.
What is UGC marketing?
UGC marketing uses content from creators or customers that brands publish on their own channels and ads. UGC creators are usually paid for content, not audience.
Creator agencies and MCNs
Creator agencies manage talent and campaigns for creators. Multi-channel networks (MCNs) work with many channels, usually for a share of their revenue.
Affiliate payouts
Affiliate payouts are commissions paid to partners who bring sales or sign-ups through their link or code.