A little about Patreon
Patreon is a platform that provides the business infrastructure to independent content creators. These creators are people making videos, music, podcasts, paintings, comics, games, magazines, and other forms of media for fans online. Patreon enables them to turn the small subset of superfans into monthly paying patrons and manage relationships with those patrons across the web. Patreon is angling to become the dominant platform for creators to build these membership businesses, a position from which it could expand into other products and services for creators.
Valuation amidst pandemic
In another $155 million funding round led by Tiger Global, Patreon has tripled its valuation to $4 billion, the company confirmed on Tuesday.
The creator economy platform, which allows artists to be directly funded by their fans, received new attention amid the COVID-19 pandemic as creators were forced to push more of their work online. The eight-year-old Patreon has already built up an extensive network. Patreon noted that more than 30,000 creators signed up for the service in the first weeks of March 2020.
New investors and more
Patreon makes money by taking a 5-12% fee from creators, depending on which of the company’s services they use. The company wrapped a $90 million round in September that valued the company at $1.2 billion.
Other investors in this new round include Woodline Partners, Wellington Management, Lone Pine Capital, and New Enterprise Associates, the report notes.
