Netflix got a wake-up call

Two stories dropped recently that really tell you everything you need to know about where media is heading.

(apparently the secret to disrupting traditional media is being named Mark and having zero patience for how things have always been done)

Story one:

Mark Rober just signed a Netflix deal that's completely different from every other creator partnership we've seen.

Netflix are partnering with his actual production company, CrunchLabs.

As opposed to just licensing his viral video ideas to turn into stretched-out TV shows.

Most creator deals follow the same formula: take what already works on YouTube, add some budget and Netflix branding, hope it translates to traditional viewing.

But Netflix looked at Rober's operation and thought "we want his entire system."

In this case, that looks like:

• a kids competition series produced by CrunchLabs

• partnership with Jimmy Kimmel's production company

• original experiments designed specifically for Netflix, integrating Rober's proven STEM education model

It looks to me that instead of adapting what creators make, platforms are now buying into how creators operate.

Netflix realised that Rober's 76 million followers are there for a specific type of educational experience that nobody else can replicate.

Story two:

Mark Goldbridge - famous for his absolutely unhinged Manchester United meltdowns - just secured something unprecedented.

The Bundesliga handed him the rights to broadcast live matches.

Not highlights. Not reactions. Full games.

A YouTuber is now on the same level as Sky, BBC, and Amazon for sports broadcasting.

He's the first creator to win rights to any European top league.

And the matches are free to watch.

But this is already happening globally.

Brazil's biggest creator is broadcasting all of next year's World Cup games on their YouTube channel.

The writing's on the wall here folks.

In my eyes, both stories reveal the same fundamental truth.

Traditional media companies are finally realising they're not competing with other TV networks anymore.

They're competing with individual creators who have direct relationships with audiences that traditional media can only dream of

The question isn't whether traditional media will adapt to creator economics.

The question is whether they'll adapt fast enough to survive the transition.

Based on this news, some of them are finally starting to figure it out.

Remember, the creator mindset is all you need to grow 🌱

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