New social media platforms, including Substack and Own, give creators ownership of the content they produce. Edward Ogunrinde explains why this is becoming a new gold standard in the creator economy.
How can creators best profit from the brand they build?
“You own what you create.” Substack’s premise is simple, but powerful: creators should own what they create. It’s a clear stance in a landscape where platforms have long claimed control over content, data, and distribution. Their current publisher agreement, updated
in August 2024, makes it unambiguous: copyright, IP, audience relationships, all stay with the creator. Substack doesn’t own the audience, the content, or the connection. You do.
With this in mind, where is the creator economy really heading? We’ve spent years analyzing creators through a marketing lens: audience size, average engagement, impressions, views. But creators today are more than metrics. They’re modern brands shaping culture, driving commerce, and holding the attention of some audiences that marketers dream of reaching.
And yet, for creators building loyal communities and fuelling brand campaigns across platforms, one question looms large: how do I preserve and profit from the brand I’ve built, on my terms? Legacy platforms, such as Meta, TikTok, and X, still hold the keys to visibility and monetization. Even with millions of views, creators are tethered to algorithms, fluctuating reach, and inconsistent payouts.
The old platform promise is breaking, and creators know it. Earlier this year, TikTok faced a temporary shutdown in the US, and with it, creators’ careers were effectively put on hold. No content, no data, no direct line to their audiences. The takeaway? If you don’t own it, you can’t scale it. You can’t protect it. You can’t monetize it.
TikTok was once heralded as the promised land for creators. A space where anyone could go viral, build an audience, and unlock opportunity. When the platform’s Creator Fund launched in 2020, it felt like a breakthrough initiative that would recognize the value creators bring. Fast-forward to today, and it feels like that promise has come up short. Despite setting aside around $2bn, creators have seen mere pennies per thousand views – and $20 to $40 for a million, if they were lucky. Not surprisingly, creators have started looking elsewhere, even as their content continues to power TikTok’s cultural cachet.
That disconnect is at the heart of a growing shift away from legacy platforms now seen as rented space, toward platforms that offer something more powerful: ownership. In the words of Substack’s co-founders: who wouldn’t want “your own corner of the internet, a place where you can build a home, on your own land, with assets you control”? And if that home comes with direct income streams, more reliable than ad revenue or brand deals… where do I sign?
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Substack isn’t just offering content control. It’s offering connection control. In a world optimized for virality and clicks, Substack is optimized for depth. Its new live video feature gives creators unfiltered access to their full subscriber base, no algorithms deciding who gets to see what. Push notifications hit 100% of audiences, co-hosting tools allow community cross-pollination, and AI tools help extend content life across channels. Here, authenticity isn’t a bonus; it’s the whole currency. Substack is building a creator economy where trust beats reach and relationships are the most valuable asset.
But Substack isn’t alone. Newly launched Own – an app built by creators, for creators – offers another compelling view into where the creator economy is headed. Even in its early stages, Own makes a bold promise to disrupt profit-first social models and replace them with an ecosystem grounded in creator-first ownership.
What truly sets Own apart, though, is the philosophy baked into its infrastructure. It doesn’t just fix what’s broken; it reimagines what creator platforms should be. Decentralized by design, Own rejects black-box algorithms, invasive data mining, and monetization gatekeeping. Instead, it runs on transparency, merit, and multiple revenue streams, from tipping and sponsorships to creator-owned tokens and licensing. No shadowbans. No 50/50 revenue splits. No guessing what ‘engagement’ means this week. Just fair payouts for real impact, with control over data, followers, and distribution. A platform that doesn’t own creators, but empowers creators to own everything.
It’s no coincidence that platforms like Substack and Own are gaining traction. The creator economy is projected to hit $500bn by 2027, according to Goldman Sachs. And with Unilever’s CEO recently doubling down on creator-led marketing, this isn’t a side hustle anymore; it's a central pillar of brand strategy. But as the industry grows, so do creators’ expectations.
Visibility and monetization matter, but equity is now the real ask. Creators aren’t just looking for a platform; they’re looking for a seat at the table. On their terms. With tools, income models, and data access that let them build sustainable, sovereign businesses. We’re already seeing that shift with platforms like Patreon, Discord, and - yes, the elephant in the room - OnlyFans cracking the code, offering creators direct monetization, audience ownership, and real autonomy. Different models, same outcome: creators in control.
So, the question isn’t whether creators will migrate to platforms like Substack or Own. They already are. The real question is: will the legacy players evolve fast enough to keep up? Will they offer creators the equity, autonomy, and revenue share they now demand?
Because the next era of the creator economy won’t be powered by platforms that simply enable content. It will be owned literally and figuratively by creators who demand a stake in what they’ve helped build.
MG Empower
London-based integrated marketing agency, MG Empower is a global collective with diverse expertise and a deep understanding of culture to make work that matters...
