For years, Dropout, the comedy platform formerly known as College Humor, followed the same audience-building playbook as most creators.
Post content to YouTube, Facebook, and elsewhere – then hope the algorithm promotes it and that ad revenue holds over time.
But this approach to creation came with a major cost.
“Your followers aren’t your followers,” said Andrew Bridgman, Dropout’s Chief Digital Officer. “These platforms are incentivized in a way that’s very misaligned with creators.”
It was then that the company decided to bet on itself. With a loyal fanbase built over the last three decades, Dropout decided to launch its own subscription streaming service in 2018.
They haven’t been alone. These days, more creators are deciding to launch their own content steamers, such as The Sidemen (Side+) and The Try Guys (2nd try).
Today, all three of them run on Vimeo OTT. But unlike The Sidemen and The Try Guys, Dropout took a slightly different path to get there.
Building Their Own Ship for Streaming
Before turning to Vimeo OTT, Dropout’s initial instinct was to develop their platform in-house. That meant creating a web player plus mobile and TV apps, each needing its own set of engineers and updates.
“We are a content business,” Bridgman said. “[But] we forced ourselves to become a tech company.”
So in 2020, Dropout decided to pivot. To focus on what they do best, they removed responsibilities like app maintenance, customer service, and legal compliance by migrating to Vimeo OTT.
“Do not build your own app,” Bridgman said. “Our budget can go to what actually matters to us and what we’re actually good at, which is content.”
What Changes When Fans Fund Your Work
Today, DropoutTV pulls in more than 10 million views a month across 100+ series. They’ve achieved more creative freedom by owning the direct relationship with their audience through Vimeo OTT.
These days, the team at DropoutTV faces far less pressure to create content at a whirlwind speed. Their editors, for example, have more time to polish episodes instead of rushing to serve platform algorithms.
“That would’ve been unthinkable if we were living in the YouTube world,” Bridgman said.
Vimeo OTT Is Built For True Ownership
Plenty of platforms talk about providing creators with ownership. This is what that looks like in practice with Vimeo OTT:
Your data is yours, including the Stripe keys. If you ever decide to move to another platform, your subs and data move with you.
Mobile checkout without the app store cut. Third-party checkout in your apps lets you sell subscriptions without handing Apple or Google up to 30% of each sale.
A product that keeps getting better. This year alone Vimeo OTT launched several new features that improve viewer engagement and experience, including child-safe profiles.
“The highest compliment I can give pretty much any tech company we work with is I don’t have to think about it most of the time because it just works,” Bridgman said.
Ready to build a streaming service that lets you own the connection to your audience? See how creators are launching on Vimeo OTT.
