This article examines the arguments for and against.
The concept of voluntary payments sounds more attractive than imposing ads on viewers.
It's a shame however that Vimeo doesn't offer a trial of the Tip Jar feature… it's $10/month minimum, plus they take a 15% cut of tips. If we buy the service, will people use it? Apparently Vimeo doesn't have enough confidence in the feature to make it free, and simply make their revenue on the cash flow.
http://newmediarockstars.com/2012/11/could-vimeo-style-tip-jars-ever-work-for-youtube-partners/
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Could Vimeo-Style ‘Tip Jars’ Ever Work For YouTube Partners?
With pre-roll video ads not being ideal for every partner, would a “tip jar” mechanic ever work on YouTube?
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Is it they don't have the confidence or don't have the need? The job of the company directors IS to make as much money as possible for the stockholders. If they've got the demand and can make the formula work for them… kudos, that means they're doing it right.
It's ridiculous to me that they would charge $10/month, then take 15% on top of that. It's definitely a lack of confidence like you said. If they knew it would work they'd just do the 15% and leave it. Instead they make sure they get money out of the people who opt to use the service.
+DeShaun Craddock If people will pay it and are satifsfied using it, why not? It's a win-win for the video producers and them.. if the video consumers are willing to pay it. Personally, I'd rather pay than watch ads.
My thought is that Vimeo is trying to get those who sign up for the service to push it for them. By charging a 10 dollar fee they urge users to push for donations and spread the word about the service without having to pay for advertising the program or rely on passively putting it on their site and hoping people donate.
I've tried donations, donations for a non-profit and flattr on a popular blog of mine and nothing worked, so unfortunately ads seem to be the only option to keep it free and open (paid subscriptions would be the other option). I like the tip jar idea but don't think it works.
I think that Vimeo is one of the few spaces where a tip jar may actually work. It is a site geared towards "for artists by artists" who understand the expense, time, and monetary value of creativity whereas YouTube is more about lighting a fart on fire while pointing your butt at a kitten while riding an ATV into a brick wall.
Because I feel that it cannibalizes the system. Are you likely to tip someone on top of paying for ad-free viewing, +Tom Rolfson? Also, if you are, do you think a lot of people would do the same?
Thank god to ad blockers… i haven't seen any ad on youtube in long time.
That's the catch, isn't it +Harald Walker? Vimeo is happy to make money off everyone who uses it, whether it works for those customers or not.. If they had more skin in the game, a vested interest in forming social media features for example to identify and promote the most tip-worthy content, the feature would be far more attractive. Instead, they want to sit back and make money off of everyone, even people it's definitely not working for.
I applaud Vimeo for trying new business models, but without any way to ease into the program (a free month or quarter trail perhaps) Vimeo doesn't yet seem fully aligned with the interests of their content creators. Surely the feature would be more successful if everyone at Vimeo came to work each day with ideas and enthusiasm for making the model work for the content creators (and Vimeo's cut), rather than sitting back and taking cash for even the unprofitable trials.
agree, there is a socially acceptable misconception that these popular free-to-use type services are somehow charities or government services that are not required to turn a profit. Vimeo is not just trying to make a profit, they have to or they will go out of business due to lack of funds to pay for all the hosting/bandwidth/employees/etc.
+DeShaun Craddock What system does it cannibalize? They have a massive infrastructure to run and paid staff to operate it. Can the model of pay and then tip work? Yes. It's working pretty well for musicians on StageIt.com with many of them making as much or more off tips during a show than they charge to watch it. And yes, I pay to watch shows and tip there.
We will see many more micro-payment content platforms emerging as people continue to cut the cord to their cable and use online video services. Again, I think it's a win-win for the producers and the hosts… their job is to make money, not deliver something free to consumers who want it.
I think the problem is that it is still no easy enough to tip +Jeff Sullivan . You need to log into PayPal, get your CC out etc. Maybe if they work with Amazon or PayPal one click checkout it might work. Still I think it would work better if the videos link to a new project on IndieGogo/Kickstarter etc.
Then again, I do tip the WikiPedia foundation and not just because to get rid of the annoying banners, but I do feel it is money well spent. A full generation is used to everything online being 'free', so not sure if a tip jar will work. And Vimeo should offer either a free plan and take 15% or a paid plan and take nothing; not the worst of both worlds..
Possibly so +Harry Kikstra, I just upgraded on Vimeo to give it a try, and uploaded my first video to enable for tipping: https://vimeo.com/53807296
Cheers +Jeff Sullivan .Hope it works out. I tried it and definitely did not feel safe enough to add my CC -details right on the page (I assume it is an https: Iframe or such, but it is not clear. When clicking PayPal nothing happened at all (using Chrome). Great video by the way!