Issue 17
January 29th, 2025
This week I read an article in Forbes that stopped me in my tracks. It opens with a line that perfectly captures what Andrew and I have been obsessing over since we started Trovio (also, check out Andrew’s thoughts on this article).
For most of its existence, the creator economy expanded without much structure... That fragmentation helped the market scale quickly. It also postponed the kind of operational discipline that large brand budgets ultimately require. In 2026, that phase is over.
Let that sink in. The wild west era… where anyone could build anything, where creativity trumped process, where you could wing it and still win. It’s officially over.
Here's what's replacing it: Creator marketing is now a permanent line item in global marketing budgets, sitting right alongside TV advertising and search. CMOs expect the same rigor, the same measurable performance, the same reliability. The article calls it "enterprise marketing infrastructure." And infrastructure demands integration, consolidation, and control.
The article explains it better than I ever could: The early creator economy ran on "attention arbitrage" – individual personalities turning platform reach into brand revenue through one-off campaigns. Speed and creativity were enough. But today, when execution is split across multiple agencies, managers, and tech vendors, data becomes fragmented and accountability weakens. That model doesn't scale.
So what's happening? Consolidation. Big advertising agencies with massive data repositories are buying up smaller creator-focused companies. Talent management is evolving from "deal broker" to "operating partner" – helping creators launch products, develop IP, and build actual businesses that span years, not quarters.
This is exactly why Trovio exists. The article argues that "consolidated platforms are better positioned to provide that support" – they can spread risk, invest in infrastructure, and help creators "think like founders rather than freelancers."
But here's the question the article doesn't ask: What if creators could have that infrastructure without giving up control? What if you could think like a founder, operate like a business, and own your data. All without joining a massive talent platform or getting acquired? Or, what if you’re a creator not quite ready for launching your own product or even monetizing off of big brand deals?
That's the path we're building. The wild west is over, but the future doesn't have to mean consolidation into a handful of gatekeepers. There's a third way: owning your infrastructure while staying independent. The creator economy is growing up. The question is: will you grow with it?
Now onto what else is happening in the creator economy this week!
Biggest News This Week
TikTok officially closed its deal on January 22nd, spinning off U.S. operations into a joint venture with American majority ownership (Oracle, Silver Lake, and others). The existential threat of a ban is over, replaced by institutional certainty. Creators now contract with "TikTok USDS" and retain content ownership, but grant TikTok broad usage rights—including for AI model training.
But here's where things got messy: Almost immediately after the deal closed, creators started reporting major technical issues. Videos are getting stuck in review for hours, analytics are completely broken, and many uploads are showing zero views even when they appear live. Some creators checked from alternate accounts and discovered their videos weren't appearing at all, despite looking "posted" from their main account.
TikTok Studio isn't working properly either—analytics won't load, or they're showing completely wrong data. Stories are displaying zero views even when people are actively engaging with them. Downdetector caught over 35,000 reports, and while that number has dropped, plenty of creators say they're still dealing with broken uploads days later.
No one knows yet if these problems are related to backend changes from the ownership transition, but the timing is suspicious. For creators who rely on consistent posting schedules to stay in the algorithm's good graces, losing even a day of uploads is a serious problem. The regulatory stability everyone wanted has arrived—but so have some serious growing pains.
Did You Know?
New data show the creator economy’s wealth gap is widening. According to a CreatorIQ report, the top 10% of creators received 62% of brand ad spending in 2025 (up from 53% in 2023). The top 1% alone took 21% of payouts. Meanwhile, although average creator earnings rose to ~$11.4K, the median dropped to ~$3K – indicating a few stars pull the average up as most earn less. Industry analysts liken this to Hollywood economics, where a handful of big influencers land lucrative sponsorship deals (even branching into TV and Netflix projects) while smaller creators struggle. It’s a wake-up call for business-minded creators to diversify income and not rely solely on brand deals concentrated at the top.
The creator economy's wealth gap is widening fast. According to a CreatorIQ report, the top 10% of creators received 62% of brand ad spending in 2025 (up from 53% in 2023). The top 1% alone took 21% of all payouts. Meanwhile, although average creator earnings rose to around $11,400, the median dropped to roughly $3,000—meaning a few stars are pulling the average up while most creators earn significantly less. Industry analysts are comparing this to Hollywood economics, where a handful of big influencers land lucrative deals while smaller creators struggle. It's a wake-up call: diversify your income and don't rely solely on brand deals concentrated at the top.
Essential Reads
A Digiday deep-dive categorizes creators into distinct business models, highlighting that “creator” is an umbrella term for very different enterprises. For instance, “Audience-owned media” creators operate like mini-publishers (multi-platform content, direct audience monetization via ads, subs, events) and are increasingly competing with traditional media. “Platform-native entertainers,” by contrast, depend heavily on one platform’s algorithm (think TikTok or Reels stars) and face volatile reach, prompting many to go multi-platform eventually. Other segments include influencers as distribution channels (hired mainly for their reach in ad campaigns), expert educators (monetizing niche knowledge via courses, Patreon), creator-led product companies (creators launching their own brands), and more. The key insight: the creator economy is fragmenting into varied career models, so creators should identify which model they fit (or aspire to) as each has different revenue streams and risks.
Insider Intelligence reports that social creator revenues are projected to rise 16.2% this year to $20.6 billion, with sponsored content remaining the largest income source (59% of creator revenue). The analysis notes creators are expanding beyond the big three (TikTok, YouTube, Instagram) – from LinkedIn for B2B influencers to Amazon’s affiliate-heavy influencer program – and fueling a boom in social commerce (TikTok Shop’s US sales could reach $23.4B in 2026, up 48% year-over-year). However, marketers still find it hard to measure influencer ROI: 79% cite ROI tracking as their biggest challenge. The takeaway for creators is that those who can prove their impact with data (e.g. via affiliate sales or platform metrics) will be in high demand as brands pour more money into creator partnerships but demand better attribution.
Instagram launched a new feature called Instants, an in-app tool for spontaneous, unfiltered sharing akin to BeReal. Tucked in the DM tab, Instants lets you snap a photo or quick video with no filters or edits and automatically send it to mutual followers, who can view it once before it disappears. Essentially, it’s IG’s take on casual, “right-now” content – blending the immediacy of Snapchat Stories and authenticity of BeReal. This signals a push for more candid content on Instagram, encouraging creators and users to share everyday moments without curation. For creators, Instants might offer a new way to connect intimately with their core audience (since only followers you follow back see it), emphasizing raw personality over polished posts.
Time and time again we see this – creators who think of themselves as business owners are thriving. This article written by who’s becoming one of my favorite reporters in the space, Katie Salcius, details five trends for creators in 2026. Spoiler: most of them revolve around this concept of building a business as a creator.
A Florida gubernatorial candidate ignited debate by proposing a 50% tax on OnlyFans earnings. Republican hopeful James Fishback dubbed it a "sin tax" aimed at discouraging online sex work, arguing the tax could fund education and mental health programs. He even singled out a specific creator on X, telling her to "pay up or quit"—she shot back that he must have "buyer's remorse" from subscribing. While largely seen as political posturing, the episode highlights a real concern: politicians and regulators are increasingly eyeing booming creator earnings (especially in adult content) and proposing interventions that could dramatically impact creator incomes. I'd love to hear your thoughts on this—is government intervention here a good thing or overreach? Hit reply and let me know.
That's all for this week. If you found this valuable, forward it to a creator friend who needs to stay in the loop. And if someone forwarded this to you, sign up to get your own issue every Thursday.