Odd Lots: Evolving Money – Rebuilding the Creator Economy

Bloomberg's Odd Lots presents a thought-provoking episode titled "Evolving Money: Rebuilding the Creator Economy," produced in collaboration with Coinbase and Bloomberg Media Studios and released on January 12, 2025. Hosted by Maggie Lake, the episode delves into the transformative potential of blockchain technology in reshaping the creator economy, empowering content creators, and fostering direct relationships with their audiences. This comprehensive summary captures the episode's key discussions, insights, and conclusions, enriched with notable quotes and timestamps for context.

1. The Centralized Creator Economy: A Persistent Challenge

The episode opens by highlighting the longstanding issue of centralized power within the creator economy. Traditional social media platforms act as gatekeepers, controlling distribution, monetization, and ownership of creators' works. This dynamic often leaves artists earning only a fraction of the revenue their content generates.

Maggie Lake [06:07]: "But at the same time, one of the big challenges has been that as people have brought their creativity online, they've predominantly brought it into these platforms that they don't control or own."

Jesse Pollack, VP of Engineering at Coinbase and creator of the Base platform, underscores the limitations creators face within existing systems:

Jesse Pollack [07:00]: "if you're a web creator, it's not like there's much choice."

Creators typically receive about 5% of the revenue, with platforms retaining the majority, compounded by additional transaction fees and payment delays.

2. Historical Context: The Stationers' Monopoly and the Birth of Copyright

To contextualize the current landscape, the episode draws parallels to 17th-century England, where John Locke and other thinkers challenged the Worshipful Company of Stationers' monopoly over publishing. This historical narrative illustrates how gatekeepers have long controlled the dissemination and monetization of creative works.

Dr. Adrian Johns [03:49]: "It was essentially a monopoly, a kind of cartel that looked after the whole trade."

Despite the introduction of the Statute of Anne in 1710, which marked the inception of copyright law, powerful publishing cartels continued to dominate, restricting authors' control and earnings.

Dr. Adrian Johns [05:25]: "This idea that the commanding heights of the literary culture are held by a relatively small number of very powerful commercial operations."

This comparison sets the stage for exploring how modern technologies might break similar monopolistic patterns in the digital age.

3. Blockchain as a Paradigm Shift: Introducing Base

Jesse Pollack introduces Base, a blockchain-based platform designed to grant creators genuine ownership and control over their content. By leveraging blockchain technology, Base aims to dismantle the centralized "walled gardens" of today's social media, enabling creators to establish direct, transparent relationships with their audiences.

Jesse Pollack [08:46]: "how blockchains might revolutionize how people post, interact with, and profit from original content online."

Moving on-chain signifies transitioning from traditional online platforms to decentralized networks where creators can manage distribution and monetization autonomously.

Jesse Pollack [08:27]: "Onchain is the next generation of the Internet that's built on blockchains like Base."

4. Empowering Creators: Ownership and Monetization on the Blockchain

Transitioning content on-chain offers creators unparalleled control over their work. Platforms built on blockchain provide transparency in algorithms governing content distribution, enabling creators to understand and influence how their work reaches audiences.

Maggie Lake [09:00]: "You take your music, you take your video, and you put it on chain. But now all of the algorithms are open so you can actually understand what's going to lead to more distribution versus less distribution."

This shift allows creators to migrate their audience across different decentralized applications without being tethered to a single platform, fostering greater flexibility and ownership.

Jesse Pollack [09:17]: "the creator retains control over the distribution and monetization of their work."

By reclaiming revenue streams previously dominated by centralized platforms, creators can explore innovative monetization models and foster more robust economic relationships with their fans.

5. Case Study: Doodles and Julian Hogan's Vision

Julian Hogan, CEO of Doodles, exemplifies the practical application of on-chain principles in the entertainment sector. Transitioning from his role at Billboard, Hogan leads Doodles, a digital entertainment platform entirely built on blockchain.

Julian Hogan [12:03]: "We're basically what a modern day cartoon franchise might look like."

Doodles integrates various content forms—short films, music videos, digital comics—while fostering a vibrant social community where users create and personalize unique digital avatars, fully owned on the blockchain.

Julian Hogan [12:20]: "People use avatars to communicate constantly. They make gifs, they make stickers, they make short form animations."

A notable project, Project Gray, a short film featuring collaborations with Pharrell Williams and Lil Wayne, showcases how on-chain platforms can create immersive, interactive experiences where audience participation directly influences the narrative.

Julian Hogan [13:30]: "this is a really kind of novel concept that doesn't exist in any other form of media."

The success of Project Gray, which sold over 50,000 tickets, underscores the market's receptiveness to content that offers tangible ownership and participation benefits to fans.

Julian Hogan [14:37]: "people are going to be drawn to it... how can you have fun with your friends on the Internet."

6. Enhancing Customer Relationships: The Blackbird Example

Beyond entertainment, blockchain technology facilitates deeper customer relationships in various industries. Blackbird, an on-chain dining app developed by Coinbase, exemplifies this by enabling restaurants to build direct, transparent connections with their patrons.

Jesse Pollack [15:38]: "Blackbird is kind of like a traditional dining rewards program. But by going on chain, the app gives restaurants a direct, transparent connection with every customer."

Customers can create personal profiles that track their interactions across multiple visits, allowing restaurants to offer personalized experiences and tailored rewards.

Maggie Lake [16:00]: "you're going to have a more intimate experience at every next restaurant that you show up at."

With hundreds of New York City restaurants adopting Blackbird, the platform demonstrates the scalability and practicality of on-chain solutions in enhancing customer loyalty and engagement.

7. The Future of the On-Chain Economy: A New Internet Paradigm

The episode envisions a future where on-chain platforms become the norm, fundamentally altering how creators and businesses interact with their audiences. This transformation is seen as an "exponential ramp" towards a decentralized internet that prioritizes creators' autonomy and consumers' ownership.

Maggie Lake [16:46]: "We'll kind of see this transformation where the world shifts from online to on chain. And it won't happen overnight, but it will accelerate faster and faster until the entire world's on chain."

Jesse Pollack reflects on the historical struggle against gatekeepers, emphasizing that blockchain technology offers a pathway to a more equitable and transparent creator economy.

Jesse Pollack [17:27]: "there's no gate, no wall that keeps creators from having control over their work, earning money from their fans, and growing with the community that matters most to them."

Conclusion: A Decentralized Renaissance for Creators and Businesses

"Evolving Money: Rebuilding the Creator Economy" encapsulates a compelling argument for blockchain as a catalyst for democratizing the creator economy. By enabling true ownership, transparent monetization, and direct audience engagement, on-chain platforms like Base, Doodles, and Blackbird are pioneering a new era where creators and businesses can thrive without the constraints of centralized gatekeepers. This shift promises a more inclusive, dynamic, and equitable landscape for creativity and commerce in the digital age.

Notable Quotes:

• Jesse Pollack [07:00]: "if you're a web creator, it's not like there's much choice."
• Maggie Lake [09:00]: "all of the algorithms are open so you can actually understand what's going to lead to more distribution versus less distribution."
• Julian Hogan [14:37]: "people are going to be drawn to it... how can you have fun with your friends on the Internet."

This episode of Odd Lots serves as an insightful exploration of how blockchain technology is poised to redefine the dynamics of the creator economy, offering both historical context and forward-looking perspectives on decentralizing creative and business endeavors.