Youtube Channels Owned by Private Equity - Page 1
Forum section: electronics / general

author: EEVblog
author_rank: Unknown
timestamp: July 24, 2025, 10:20:31 am
content: I didn't know this!Veritasium, Economics explained, Mentour, and others are now owned by private equity.

author: pdenisowski
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: July 24, 2025, 04:01:13 pm
content: Wow. Just ... wow.

author: ataradov
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: July 24, 2025, 04:04:01 pm
content: This really sucks, but can't blame people for taking the bag.At the same time, this likely introduces new behavior from the viewers. For myself, I noticed that I'm much more likely to unsubscribe from channels even after one or two videos I did not like. Not even for content reasons, but for behavior. I'm instantly unsubscribing if ads are not clearly delineated from content. People try to be slick, but it is just annoying.At the same time, there really are a lot of new smaller channels with interesting content, so it is not like you will run out of stuff to watch. Even thought YT discovery algorithm sucks big time. I don't even know why they can't figure it out.

author: elantric
author_rank: Contributor
timestamp: July 24, 2025, 06:14:33 pm
content: I find the large proliferation of pure AI generated documentary YouTube videos over populating the platform with redundant diatribes, mispronounced common names, that clearly are click bait monetization channels for unsophisticated viewers who can't tell its a computer generated script and narrator -all contribute to undermining the value of YouTube as a go to platform

author: Simmed
author_rank: Frequent Contributor
timestamp: July 24, 2025, 06:41:04 pm
content: big hungry money sucking monstersit is like the scifi moviesonce they suck it drythey just move on to the next thing to suck

author: langwadt
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: July 24, 2025, 06:47:27 pm
content: Quote from: elantric on July 24, 2025, 06:14:33 pmafaiu since July 15, YT has been demonetizing such content

author: lokin4areason
author_rank: Contributor
timestamp: July 24, 2025, 07:19:03 pm
content: its been going down hill since g88gle aquired themnow , they are branching out in sourcing and opening up other avenue(s) of incomenot mentioning at who post(s) on there , that genrate(s) some sort of income ( which is a friction till that channel , well , flies off , as in being veiwed )think that there should be another site ( think that they do ) at where big media doesnt have a foot hold in it and leeching off of

author: ataradov
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: July 24, 2025, 07:23:29 pm
content: What this has to do with google? If it was a successful platform without google, private equity would still buy up channels. But without google YT would be dead.It is not about the platform, it is about the people that are successful on any platform.Ultimately, if someone came to me with a bag of money, I'd certainly take it.

author: thm_w
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: July 24, 2025, 10:29:02 pm
content: Its not super clear but I guess they do own the channel and he retains a <50% share:"Derek Muller, the channel's founder and leading talent will continue to play a key part in the business’ future, retaining an ongoing ownership interest in Veritasium and becoming a shareholder in Electrify Video Partners."https://www.electrify.video/post/electrify-completes-majority-investment-in-veritasiumWhich encourages him to continue to make good videos.Quote from: ataradov on July 24, 2025, 04:04:01 pmSometimes its good sometimes it sucks. Right now for a week they've been suggesting tons of 10-12 year old videos, probably because I watched a few older sketch clips.

author: EEVblog
author_rank: Unknown
timestamp: July 24, 2025, 11:57:07 pm
content: Quote from: thm_w on July 24, 2025, 10:29:02 pmHe sold in April 2023:https://www.electrify.video/post/veritasiums-derek-muller-on-partnering-with-electrify-a-win-win-for-creatorshttps://www.electrify.video/post/electrify-completes-majority-investment-in-veritasiumGiven that they got $50M in series A funding the month before in March.https://www.electrify.video/newsIt's obvious that Derek was their first major target.So I'd be surprised if he didn't get at least $5M, maybe $10M.They needed that big name.Given that it's a private company the stock options aren't very liquid.I can remember being on a Youtube creator group video call with him back when he only had like a 1000 subscribers, you could tell he was really driven even back then.

author: thm_w
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: July 25, 2025, 12:43:00 am
content: Seems they are doing the hiring for his channel:https://www.electrify.video/careers"Physics YouTube Channel Writer/Director - Veritasium UK/US"Some other numbers:QuoteThey probably realized the 100% buyout just results in the creator leaving and making a new channel.But I think we'd need to know more about the behind the scenes details, to what extent are they steering the content creation, does the contract require x videos to be produced per week, etc.

author: coppercone2
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: July 25, 2025, 12:55:10 am
content: I wonder if this is why I have been watching less and less youtube since about 2 years ago and reading more and moreFor things like task and purpose I would not be surprised if there was a men in black telling them to sell it lol. Stars and stripes II? (did things the pentagon had any possible measures of control on have any viewers left?)I wonder if this ownership leads to that thing I notice where it seems like stuff went through a professional focus group for editing before release ... I wonder what it looks like for science and technology stuff. I imagine usually it might have something to do with getting rid of 'too boring' and 'too technical' to get that glossy magazine 'condensate'. We don't want our viewers to think their nerds!

author: tggzzz
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: July 25, 2025, 08:48:42 am
content: Quote from: EEVblog on July 24, 2025, 11:57:07 pmThe private company issue is a generic problem, of course.The investors will want an RoI. Presuming an advertising model for getting the "return", it will be interesting to see how that affects the creator and material over time.

author: coppercone2
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: July 25, 2025, 08:58:19 am
content: they get growth quotas when they are successful and burn out. Investors want to see growth because everyone else is promising them growth. They buy it because they got promised that if they buy enough they will retire in the next few yearsThe usual things you get from complaints is that the person doing it had some reasonable work load for himself. Say 1 video a week. Then they will start to demand to make two videos a week. The incorrect assumption is that he can use resources to constantly double their output. So its treated like a production facility. Only problem is, they don't have conveyor belts for good ideas. Factories are extremely repetitive and boring and consequently its somewhat possible to double output with investment with capital money to share tasks, pay for expedited services, etc.It seems to come out very badly when you try to do this for anything but tool and die work though.So its a horse stable and it turns into a camel clone facility. The only way to expedite the creative process is to hold brainstorming meetings. We know what happens to a design when it goes through committee. Most engineers have had projects they started working on, which some how get into a meeting. Suddenly the engineer is no longer interested in the project when they get some inane task list from the coworkers.

author: tszaboo
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: July 25, 2025, 12:47:52 pm
content: Quote from: coppercone2 on July 25, 2025, 08:58:19 amI don't think it's about money. These companies have proved that they are not really interested in making money anymore, they are much more interested in buying votes for their political agenda. Youtube is full of independent creators, with glass roots. It could be the epitome of free speech and free thought if it wasn't for google and now these companies. It's about controlling thoughts, pushing the message and making sure their crony capitalism continues.Like Hollywood lost all credibility, same for MSM, there was still some from independent creators on Youtube. But oh well, we can't have that.

author: wilfred
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: July 25, 2025, 02:40:14 pm
content: Quote from: ataradov on July 24, 2025, 04:04:01 pmThey have figured it out. It is easy for them to change the algorithm if it doesn't work for them. But it does. They're not mugs, really they're not. As long as the percentages run in their favour it's working.But I'm not impressed by content creators muddying the water with sponsorships. I won't stand for that. And If I start feeling like I'm the product that's not good either. I'm sure they use AI to look at what I watch and I get some pretty unimaginative offerings. I routinely clear my history for what it's worth but recently I got a slew of recommendations from the type of content I watched years ago. I didn't mind per se except I wonder how much the retain.I'd take the PE money too so I don't have a problem with that.

author: EEVblog
author_rank: Unknown
timestamp: July 25, 2025, 10:45:14 pm
content: Quote from: thm_w on July 25, 2025, 12:43:00 amNo doubt. Most takeovers of big companies involve locking in the visibly public CEO staying on for at least 2 years before their shares vest, because they know they'll just leave otherwise.Task & Purpose is interesting, it was also bought out.But I thought the host of it actually owned his own channel, he didn't, but now he has left because he didn't own anything, was making the videos from his own home studio, and was getting pressure from the new VC firm to meet goals.And view predictably tanked after he left:

author: coppercone2
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: July 26, 2025, 12:51:14 am
content: Quote from: tszaboo on July 25, 2025, 12:47:52 pmIts always about the money. They will have to find some metric by which to judge the effect of the operation and have you follow that. I don't know what that would be. I know usually though, it looks dumb as hell from the point of view of a outside observer.I am sure you can find something if you figure out how the military decides if psy-op campaigns are successful or pissing money into the wind.I am sure its something equally inane. Like "our iilluminati analysts determined that you must use the word _____ between 36 to 49 times in your next video to maximize engagement" that makes video making equally unpleasant. Or that it needs to have at least three memes from their currated collection. Must be like landing a job at the IRA (not the irish one)What I mean is that there is some super robotic way of determining feedback and 'quality' that is imposed on the video maker by some outside power that ends up not making much sense and makes the job suck.Let's face it, usually when you work for shady people... it is a check box job. The managers involved in those things are always money fueled robots. And usually they are actively trying to rip off the 'head' of the operation , financially, as much as possible. Whirlpool of crooks.

author: coppercone2
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: July 26, 2025, 01:06:43 am
content: Or they just give you the topic. Like instead of being interested at things you are interested in and make videos about, you make videos about something someone put on a list. Then your job description actually goes from 'creator' to 'actor' and 'scriptwriter' (or they give you this too). That's what I mean by committee. At that point you are acting out someones script.The way that its supposed to work is that you become a producer and get resources to perfect your thing to make a masterpiece, but it does not look like that is what goes down!If the company has too much control... then it just needs your face, not your brain.the youtube channel ends up having a 'foothold' situation.This is so well defined by hollywood.... producer drama and bad studiosmusic too. Particularly music with lyrics, but even other type of music gets these 'mod requests' like audio tuning, what frequencies, etc.