This Week: Disney just licensed more than 200 of its most valuable IP to OpenAI’s Sora platform. Didn’t they learn anything from the failed Maker Studios acquisition?
Also, this is the last newsletter for 2025. Look for my “Prediction-ala-palooza on Monday Jan 5th. And look for ME at the 1 Billion Followers Summit later that week, as I’m producing/programming the Economy Track!
Hello Friends! I’m Jim Louderback and this is my weekly creator economy newsletter. If you’ve received it, then you are either subscribed, or someone forwarded it to you. If the latter – and you want to subscribe, get it here!
TOP STORIES
FANDOM WINS
Disney just announced a $1B equity investment in OpenAI and a three-year licensing deal that brings 200+ Disney, Pixar, Marvel, and Star Wars characters into Sora. Some fan-made shorts will even show up on Disney+. This is the next logical step in the creator economy’s evolution from Who to What to You. I wrote about that shift in October: YouTube focused on WHO you liked (creator graph), TikTok owned the topic graph, and now Sora puts you into the video. Expect a flood of fan-fic video stories inspired in part by Kingdom Hearts, whose protagonist is (coincidentally and conveniently) named Sora.
It’s the right move, but I’m still trepidatious. We’ve been down this road before. Disney tried a version of this in 2014 when it bought Maker Studios, betting it could unleash YouTubers on Disney IP. Doomed in part by Maker producing a dozen+ episodes of a Star-Wars related reality show, which allegedly never aired because Maker neglected to vet it with either Disney or Lucas’ brand police.
OpenAI says it will implement “robust controls.” Disney says, “responsible use.” We’ll see how that goes, because OpenAI’s guardrails have historically been… interesting. Either way, Stinky Pete, Roz, and I are going to have an amazing time until it all comes crumbling down. (NPR, reddit, Digiday),
DEFANGING THE TIKTOK BAN
TikTok’s Tuesday divest-or-shutdown deadline was quietly pushed to January 23 back in late September, right after the deadline has been extended for another 90 days. And by formally labeling the Oracle and Silver Lake deal a “qualified divestiture,” the Trump administration effectively defanged the original bill.
China still hasn’t signed off… and President Xi’s approval remains the real gate. That leaves TikTok with 38 days before *something* needs to happen. Another extension perhaps? Congressional action is theoretically possible, but in today’s climate, that seems unlikely.
I have been under the wrong assumption over the past few weeks that this Tuesday was the hard deadline. But until the Oracle and Silver Lake deal is consummated, TikTok US remains in a state of interruptus. My clock has been updated accordingly. (TikTok Countdown Clock, CBS News)
BEASTLY MISTAKE
Another correction from last week. My journalist mole at DealBook misled me. Beast Industries CEO Jeffrey Housenbold wasn’t late. He was backstage the whole time. Sorry. Late or not, it was still awkward on stage.
Survivor and the Beast: Beast Games season two includes a crossover with Survivor, co-hosted by Jeff Probst and Jimmy Donaldson. This could be electric. It could also be awkward. The subtitle is “Smart vs. Strong,” presumably because “Brains vs. Brawn” was already taken by both Survivor Australia and Survivor US (which added on “vs. Beauty). Perhaps season 3 will be Smart vs. Strong vs. Sultry?
PINTEREST PREDICTS 2026
I always love the annual Pinterest predictions, in part because they are usually right (they claim an 88% hit rate), and in part because they are just so fun. This year’s report includes 21 “not yet trending” aesthetics, including Glamoratti (maximalist 80s), Gimme Gummy (tactile, rubberized, 3D looks), Pen Pals (snail mail revival), Glitchy Glam (deliberate imperfection), and Cabbage Crush (yes, cabbage as a main character). I, for one, love Khaki Coded because that’s basically my entire wardrobe – props to @Scott Jordan’s ScottEVest for finally becoming haute couture! (Pinterest, SCOTTeVEST)
PREDICTIONS, TRENDS and SIGNALS
Speaking of predictions, you’ve probably been inundated with them. You won’t see mine until January 5th, as I’m taking the next two weeks off. As usual I’ll focus on trends that will define 2026, along with key patterns and signals driving the future of the creator economy in 2027 and beyond.
I gave myself a B+ last January for my 2024 predictions. This year I asked my friends Gemini and ChatGPT to rate my 50 signals, predictions and trends for 2025.
Gemini gave me an 8/10 score for my creator economy predictions, 9/10 for my AI predictions and 9/10 for my 2026 and beyond signals – and an overall score of 9/10. That’s pretty darn good. My biggest misses? Creators Disrupt Education and the Rise of Prediction Markets. They didn’t hit the way I thought in 2025 – but you’ll have to read 2026’s newsletter to see if I’m doubling down. Oh, and Gemini suggested that I “buy a lottery ticket”, because “Almost every ‘creepy’ signal you tracked has accelerated faster than anticipated.” It also suggested that for next year I “think weirder”. Challenge accepted!
ChatGPT, on the other hand, probably thought Gemini graded on a curve. It marked me down to 8/10, saying I was “consistently right on Direction, and a bit less right on Magnitude.” It advised me to “keep the bold call” but hedge it with wishy washy words. I’ll take that under advisement.
SPONSOR
LinkedIn’s new B2B Buyer Report makes the case better than I ever could: buyers trust expert voices more than brands, and they spend most of their research time reading the people who actually understand the space. That’s exactly my audience: marketers, media execs, founders, top creators and operators who shape budgets and make decisions.
A weekly sponsorship puts your company inside a trusted, high-intent environment, shows up repeatedly where it actually matters, and aligns your brand with the point-of-view content buyers say moves them. If you want to speak to the people building the next wave of media, creators, and AI, this is where they show up every week.
Drop me an email and check out our sponsorship information here.
PLATFORMS
YOUTUBE
Let’s Do This Live!: Fun talk about new Creator Tools with YT VP of Product @Amjad Hanif and @Rene Ritchie on the YouTube Insider channel. (YouTube)
It’s All About YouTube: @Ben Thompson agrees with me in his analysis of the WB/Netflix merger. Money quote: “Library content has longevity in a way that YouTube content does not.” Time CEO of the year @Neil Mohan’s big challenge going forward? Prove him wrong. (Stratechery, Time)
Why Is This a Surprise? My other favorite Stratechery quote? “Netflix may be feared by the town, but everyone in Hollywood should fear the fact that anyone can be a creator much more.” Cue AI, turning fear into horror. (Stratechery)
Hell Hath No Fury? Disney demands YouTube remove scores of AI videos featuring Disney characters. (Variety)
Rewriting History: YouTube unlists its Rewind videos. Conspiracy theories abound. (Mashable)
META
Return of Control: Instagram launches new tools to help users train their algorithm, first in Reels and then across the entire platform. If only LinkedIn would do this. (Instagram)
TIKTOK
Finding Nemo: Washington Post data reporter @Jeremy B Merrill made a map of TikTok’s content graph. It’s a fascinating look inside the platform. His gender specific break-out is particularly interesting (LinkedIn).
Private Feeds: TikTok leans into the private social trend with “Shared Collections” and a “Shared Feed”, where you can enjoy TikTok with family and friends. (TikTok)
TikTok gets into the content game with its new live podcast series “TikTok in the Mix”, co-produced with T-Mobile. (TikTok)
QUIBIS
OTHER CREATOR ECONOMY
Anaheim Calling: VidCon launches tickets and dates for 2026. Yes, they do overlap with Cannes again. Ticket types have changed somewhat, but VidCon mostly remains the same. (VidCon)
Getting the Band Back Together: @Brent Weinstein teams up with his old UTA partner, @Greg Goodfried, to accelerate CAA Creators. Can’t wait to chat with him about this on stage at 1 Billion Followers Summit in Dubai in January! (LinkedIn)
Forget the XMas Bang: Whalar’s @Emma Harman explores why spectacle works for TV, but creators and brands are better served to build year-round narratives. Excited to see Emma discuss soul vs. programmatic at 1 Billion Followers Summit in January too! (LinkedIn, 1BFS)
The Music Man: Producing microdramas is very different from traditional media. @Scott Brown shares how they produced a musical microdrama in 7 days. See Scott talk about this at 1 Billion Followers Summit in January! (LinkedIn, 1BFS)
Studios For All: It’s not just creators as brands, agencies and even management companies are getting into the mix. Big congrats to @Leanne Perice as Made By All launches its own studio, focused on turning brands into creators too. (Deadline)
Quitting Podcasts Cold Turkey: Why you can’t watch / listen to more than one thing at a time – and still comprehend them both. Further evidence that we have no more time to welcome new media into our lives – without dropping existing ones. (User Friendly)
Familiarity Without Humanity: Now you can get a personalized podcast from The Washington Post, crafted via a partnership with 11 Labs. (NPR)
Battle Lines Being Drawn: Politicians, trad-media stalwarts and others lining up against the Netflix/WB deal. As I said in my special mid-week newsletter, a distracted Netflix can only mean good things for YouTube. (Vanity Fair, Reuters, Inside the Creator)
You Just Noticed This? Platform agnostic (which I’ve been recommending for 10 years) is now platform promiscuity. But I don’t want to bed-hop. I just want to easily multicast. (Project C)
Shall I Compare Thee to a Summer Day? @Mike Shields explores the creator / brand measurement quandary. (Next In Media)
CREATOR TECH – AI, AR, VR, MORE
- Pay Up! Lots of banks in Europe working on stablecoins. This might solve a host of creator payment problems. (CoinDesk)
- I’m Not Dead Yet: Far from pining for the fjords, @Janko Roettgers finds that Gen Alpha are helping VR thrive. (Lowpass)
RESEARCH
Podcasting For Everyone!
Forget 15 minutes of fame. In the future, everyone gets their own podcast. New research from Sounds Profitable and Signal Hill Insights says we’re already headed there, as 1 in 6 podcast listeners have tried making their own. They also reinforced the inexorable trend towards video with 71% of podcasters doing some form of video. Also, the churn is real. About a third of would-be podcasters have already quit, which creates a surprisingly big untapped market. One more encouraging signal: podcasting looks like it’s getting healthier and more diverse. There’s still a gender gap in who starts, but once people do, retention is basically equal. And multicultural creators appear to stick around and succeed at higher rates overall. (Sounds Profitable)
Everyone Is a Creator Now, And Commerce Is Tagging Along
@Dan Frommer’s latest consumer research has a useful reminder for anyone building in the creator economy. “Creator” is no longer a job title. It’s normal consumer behavior, especially for Gen Z and Millennials. Nearly half self-identify as creators, mostly “for fun,” and three quarters say it’s a viable career, even though only a small minority will ever turn it into reliable income. Frommer’s research is U.S.-only, but based on my conversations with experts in multiple markets, I hear the same creator-career perceptions almost everywhere.
His research also shows why creator-led commerce keeps winning. Younger consumers trust creator recommendations more than traditional ads, and when they try creator brands, “genuine expertise” matters more than simply following the creator. Platforms built around content-to-cart are winning, with TikTok Shop projected to top $15B in US GMV in 2025 and video driving the bulk of sales. Unfortunately, there’s no long tail: The top 1% of TikTok Shop creators drive a majority of sales (when you remove live, product cards, etc). (New Consumer)
WHERE’s JIM?
I’M A STAR! So proud to be immortalized in the latest episode of Alan’s Universe! Thanks Alan and Chelsea and all of the Creator Week Macao team for making this magic moment happen. (YouTube)
See you in Dubai in January!
Like this free newsletter? Buy me a coffee and say thanks! Or let’s do a meetup in your town.
100% written by me. AI used very sparingly for edits.
I’ve built and sold multiple creator economy startups to top media companies – including an MCN to Discovery and VidCon to Paramount. Subscribe here on LinkedIn to get this newsletter every Monday.
Let me know what you think – email me at jim@louderback.com. Thanks for reading and see you around the internet.
