The anatomy of a MCN network

[Blendor Sefaj]

I'm very interested in knowing how MCN networks work, what do they offer to content creators and investors/clients in general, the differences between them etc.

If I would like to start a MCN, would it be possible without me beign a YouTuber or is that a must?

 

[Styxie]

Your best bet in starting one is either becoming a big enough Youtuber as to be given a partner manager, or to start a VN (Virtual Network) undera network that has a MCN incubator program.

 

[RaptBlue]

MCNs are entities on YouTube that aggregate channels together usually to make them more appealing to advertisers (you'd be more interested in buying an ad that has a potential audience of 100s of millions than just 100s of thousands). Most networks also offer benefits to their creators like music libraries, content protection, faster support, etc. In exchange for this, the MCN takes a cut of the revenue due to the channel from advertising.

As for differences between MCNs, they are primarily a matter of genre: Machinima is focused on gaming, StyleHaul is focused on beauty/fashion, and so on.

 

[TigerXtrm]

I'm very interested in knowing how MCN networks work, what do they offer to content creators and investors/clients in general, the differences between them etc.

If I would like to start a MCN, would it be possible without me beign a YouTuber or is that a must?

You talk about this as if owning an MCN is something you just do on the side. You do realize the insane amount of paperwork and administration that comes with handling the finances for every single channel in your network, right? An MCN is no different that starting a company.

This is one of those things where, if you have to ask these basic questions, you're not ready or capable of doing this by a long shot.

 

[Blendor Sefaj]

You talk about this as if owning an MCN is something you just do on the side. You do realize the insane amount of paperwork and administration that comes with handling the finances for every single channel in your network, right? An MCN is no different that starting a company.

This is one of those things where, if you have to ask these basic questions, you're not ready or capable of doing this by a long shot.

Tiger, thank you for your concern!
I'm aware of the complexity of the matter and I think that it is nothing wrong to just ask when you don't know the answer. I study economics, worked before in agencies/companies/startups and am still working there, so the paperwork and logistics and everything around it is familiar.

I wanted to know maybe a little bit more specific from the organizational and operational view-point: the structure of MCN, how the company-YouTuber relationship works, maybe some insights into day-to-day actions etc.