Next in Media talked to Michael Wayne, co-founder and CEO of Kin, about his nearly 20-year journey building a media company alongside YouTube's evolution. Wayne shared how his company navigated multiple business model shifts—from the MCN era to working with traditional celebrities on digital platforms, licensing content to streaming services and cable networks during the pandemic, and experimenting with FAST channels. The conversation explored the challenges of the changing creator economy, why YouTube is no longer the sole focus for content distribution, and how AI might transform storytelling and the media industry. Wayne also discussed his work with AI LA and his optimistic view on technology's potential to create new opportunities rather than just displacement.

Join us for this fascinating conversation about adapting to constant change in digital media.

🔖 Chapters:

00:00 - Introduction and Early Days: From Blogging to YouTube

04:40 - The Smosh Discovery and Early MCN Era

11:00 - The Funded Channels Project and Working with Traditional Celebrities

17:00 - The Pandemic Opportunity: Licensing to Streaming and Cable

19:44 - The FAST Channel Experiment and Why They Shuttered It

23:12 - The Changing YouTube Landscape and Creator Economy Challenges

28:00 - Getting Involved in AI: From Paper Cup to AI LA

32:00 - AI Avatars and the Future of Lifestyle Content

34:00 - Hollywood's Challenges Beyond AI and Reasons for Optimism

💡 Takeaways:

🎬 Kin's core mission has always been creating and monetizing IP, even as distribution models constantly evolved over 18 years.

📺 The pandemic created unexpected opportunities to license YouTube content to streaming platforms and cable networks hungry for programming.

⚡ FAST channels require significant resources to operate successfully—licensing content proved more profitable for Kin than running their own channel.

📉 The middle class of YouTube creators faces more challenges post-COVID, with changing monetization models and the rise of short-form content.

🔄 YouTube is no longer the only starting point—many creators now build audiences on TikTok or Instagram before expanding to long-form platforms.

🤖 AI might impact lifestyle creators first through avatar technology, allowing fans to interact with AI versions of personalities like Gordon Ramsay.

🎯 The media industry is bifurcating: tech giants with massive resources on one end, the creator economy on the other, with traditional media in the middle facing consolidation.

💡 New technologies historically create more jobs than they eliminate—the key is being open to opportunities we can't yet imagine.

🎪 Working with traditional celebrities on YouTube required a true partnership model with shared equity, not traditional talent deals.

Follow Michael Wayne: https://linkedin.com/in/michael-wayne-kin

Kin Community: https://www.kincommunity.com

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