VidCon 2016: Why YouNow has become a livestreaming favorite among creators
Let’s face it, we’re all getting more impatient. Especially when it comes to accessing content.
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Why should creators wait to upload and distribute a video when they can just broadcast live? This question has given rise to platforms like Facebook Live and Periscope as established players have been shoring up their capabilities. Even YouTube announced yesterday that livestreaming would become an integral part of its native mobile app.
The livestreaming craze has also resulted in the up-and-coming platform YouNow, which, in a lot of ways, isn't really up and coming at all: it has 100 million user sessions a month and streams 150,000 live broadcasts each day. Creators are turning to YouNow rather than its bigger-named competitors because of its discovery advantages, community, and the ability to “guest” in other streams.
Attempting to capitalize on the buzz surrounding the platform, YouNow is heading to VidCon this year with its first Featured Creator at the conference and its first big star, Hailey Knox, who recently signed a recording deal with S-Curve Records.
Huffington Post, Refinery29, MTV Networks, are among media broadcasters on YouNow, and America’s Got Talent recently hosted live auditions on the platform.
For more on YouNow and its VidCon plans we caught up with CEO Adi Sideman:
Found Remote: What does YouNow hope to accomplish this year at VidCon?
Adi Sideman: We are pleased to be at VidCon to connect with our amazing community of broadcasters and fans. Some of our top talent will be attending VidCon as we host both the community stage and a broadcasting booth on the creator floor. We will also be spreading the word about how creators can become our partners to earn on YouNow. And recording artist, Hailey Knox who built her fan base on YouNow will be performing on the Industry track stage.
FR: What enhancements is YouNow planning on rolling out to benefit both creators and viewers?
Sideman: YouNow has been rolling out innovative programming such as the America’s Got Talent auditions that ran for 13 weeks on YouNow. The live auditions have been seen over 1.3 Million times since start, and on average of 100,000 views per streaming audition. Now there is a new show on YouNow called “Date my Son” with Howie and Alex Mandel. We will also continue to work with our media partners such as Refinery29 and the Huffington Post where there is a new show devoted to LGBT issues.
FR: Facebook, Google, and Twitter continue to roll out great tools and platforms for creators - and are now trying harder than ever to retain them. How can YouNow compete with them?
Sideman: YouNow has a great community, very positive, very special. We are not competing with other platforms - broadcasters look at each platform differently. YouNow allows broadcasters to perform live and interact with fans in real time. We are a place where creators build a fan base and community.
FR: Do you see a place for live streaming video to be integrated into linear TV programming? If so, what can that look like?
Sideman: This is certainly a possibility but not part of our focus at the moment.
FR: Are there opportunities yet for brands and advertisers to take advantage of YouNow?
Sideman: Yes, we have many brands supporting individual broadcasters - Arizona Iced Tea and Wendy’s, for example. YouNow has not participated in those deals which transpire between the brand and the talent. And we have partners such as Roker Media who are actively looking for brand partners for shows they have produced for YouNow such as “Ship it or Tip It” with broadcaster, EvieWhy.