Lounges.tv, a new and disruptive streaming platform backed by Simon Cowell, is now a proud member of the IPM. The disruptive new business model allows fans and followers to discover, interact with, and support the creators they love.
Since Lounges.tv launched last year, it’s helped thousands of artists and creators earn money and connect with fans. The platform is home to a diverse range of creators, from musicians, comedians and chefs to educators and fitness trainers. It’s a space where creators curate and share their content through live, interactive streaming, video-on-demand and one-to-ones, via their own channels or ‘live lounges’.
From the viewers’ perspective, Lounges.tv is a place where they can find exclusive content (i.e. content not available anywhere else) from their favourite creators on their individual Lounges channels, and interact with these creators. They can take part in livestreamed events, watch video-on-demand, and request one-to-one sessions (two-way streaming) with creators. During livestreams, viewers can interact with creators via web chat, can send tips – visible to other viewers as well as to the creator running the livestream – and can even be invited to take part in a livestream (i.e. ‘come on stage’).
In addition to Simon Cowell, the streaming platform is backed by Prince’s former manager Kiran Sharma and BBC iPlayer founder Ben Lavender. It has fruitful partnerships with several innovative companies including: C-Screens, Ocean Outdoors, Time Machine Capital Squared, and The Outernet.
What sets Lounges.tv apart from other streaming platforms?
Whereas many streaming platforms rely on a conventional revenue model, Lounges.tv offers a pioneering, creator-first revenue model. Specifically, the platform gives creators access to a pay-per-view paywall (viewers pay to watch video content), tipping revenue model (fans can tip during live performances), and ticketing revenue. Creators keep 80% of their streaming income, and are paid within 24 hours of their content being made available on their Lounges.tv channels.
Another way Lounges.tv is a truly interactive platform where creators create their own communities or “live Lounges”, and invite followers on their social media channels to Lounges.tv for longer-form, exclusive content, e.g., livestreams and video-on-demand. Creators manage their own channels – they are in the driving seat – and can choose to monetise as much of their content as they wish. The fact that they are rewarded fairly (80% of revenue) motivates creators to use Lounges for their best content.
What the Lounges.tv team says:
“What really drew me in to this platform is that it supports emerging talent. The artists literally get paid within 24 hours and take 80 per cent of the revenue – brilliant.”
Simon Cowell
“Musicians, comedians, educators and any other kind of content creator are having a hard time now. At the heart of Lounges.tv is our creator-first revenue share model. We want to enable creators to move away from an unhealthy obsession with meaningless reach and follower numbers, and instead to a focus on meaningful and true fan engagement. This is how creators will be rewarded fairly, and this is what will motivate them to create content and fulfil their potential.
Craig Gardner, Lounges.tv Co-founder and CPO
“One of the things we wanted to do when Craig and I set up Lounges.tv was support musicians – and creators more generally – in making a living. This is also why Simon Cowell – the ultimate champion of talent – has backed our company.
“There’s a wealth of talent out there and we believe that – whether you’ve got 10 followers or 100,000 followers – you should be able to generate income from your hard work and creativity.
“I find it really heartening to hear incredible artists talking about how the platform has made a difference to their lives – and to their bank balances. This is exactly what we set out to do when we created Lounges.tv. It’s our mission to democratise content creation – and that means making sure that talented creators have access to a have a fair platform where they can share their content, get discovered and make a living.
“The creators who join us know that the platform represents an exciting departure from the conventional ad-centric model that values creators according to how many ad views and followers they can amass. We are in the business of making sure that talent that gets rewarded, which is why we don’t rely on ads but instead give creators a number of fan-funding options – tickets, tips or pay-per-view. It’s so great to see artists taking control!”
Scott Green, Lounges.tv Co-founder and CEO
How exactly do creators get earn revenue on Lounges.tv?
There are three ways creators can get funded by fans and followers via the platform. Importantly, creators can choose not to charge for specific events or video-on-demand – they have full control of their channels or ‘live lounges:
- The tipping function, which allows viewers to make financial contributions (tips) to artists during their online performances (it’s fun for creators and viewers see the tips and tippers flagged during the live chat)
- Ticket sales for creators’ online gigs/livestreams
- Pay-per-view for any video content that creators share via their Lounges.tv channels.
- Profile tipping – earnings revenue does not stop when the creators are not live; viewers can tip via creators’ profiles.
- One-to-ones
The harsh reality of the music industry in statistics – calling all music venues!
Research shows 54% of musicians in the UK earn an annual income of less than £21,000, with many (44%) saying a lack of income means a career in music is ‘unsustainable’*1. Among content creators more broadly, it is becoming harder than ever for them to get their work seen online. With a staggering 3.7 million new videos flooding YouTube*2 and 34 million TikToks uploaded daily*3, almost three quarters (72%) of content creators say they made less than £393 ($500 USD) in the last 12 months*4.
Artists are not the only ones facing challenges – the UK’s grassroots music venues are closing at an unprecedented rate, according to a report from the Music Venue Trust*5. In 2023, 125 venues have closed – a rate of two per week. And 38% of the venues that are still open report making a financial loss in 2023, despite seeing an increased demand for tickets.
It’s against this industry backdrop that Lounges.tv is aiming to shake up the content creation industry, to the benefit of creators – and venues – who want to livestream to a broader audience, get discovered and earn money. The music industry has changed a lot over the last fifteen years, driven of course largely by streaming and digital technology, but we don’t want this to be at the expense of live venues. We all want venues to stay open – this is important for artists and important for fans. We’d encourage more venues to come on board and embrace the positive aspects of these changes. Step 1: set up livestreams of your events!
Lounges.tv is a sanctuary for talented content creators, and works with them to ensure they receive the recognition and rewards they deserve. Lounges.tv is the future of the content creation industry and things are moving fast – so watch this space!
Discover more here: https://lounges.tv
