News

Each week, we handpick a selection of stories to give you a snapshot of trends, updates, business moves, and more from around the creator industry. This week, a YouTube legend is back in action, another icon is celebrating her favorite drink, and a brand is testing the limits of the phrase “better late than never.”

Creator commotion

Lilly Singh returns to YouTube. A fresh 41-minute vlog catches in the midst of a deep clean. As she discards costumes and other relics of the Superwoman era, the former YouTube comedy queen promised viewers that she will continue to keep in touch, even if it won’t be with the skits her 14 million subscribers are used to.

Alex Cooper wants to throw the best Spring Break party ever. The podcast’s media company Unwell is throwing a spring break bash that will take over Miami from March 20-23. I’d imagine that...

Pocket.watch has repackaged content from top YouTube kids franchises — including the mega-popular Ryan ToysReview channel — into half-hour TV show formats that are now streaming on Hulu and Amazon Prime Video.

The startup is looking to sell the collection of TV shows internationally, too, through a pact with Paramount Pictures. The shows mark the latest line of business for Pocket.watch, launched in the spring of 2017 by CEO Chris M. Williams. The company’s strategy: to develop and launch internet-centric children’s media brands that yield multiple revenue streams.

“For us, it’s about a global extension into these long-form platforms,” said Williams, a former Disney and Maker Studios exec. “For our partners, it’s an opportunity to capture what kids are truly interested in and passionate about today.”

The first format is “Ultimate Mishmash,” which strings together best-of clips from Pocket.watch’s stable of YouTubers into 22-minute episodes.

In case you've been living under a rock for a while, the hottest game in the online video community is Fortnite: Battle Royale, which recently surpassed Minecraft become the most-popular game on YouTube:

Fortnite surpassing Minecraft on YouTube whoa man pic.twitter.com/LVagWdLykg

— Jordan Maron (@CaptainSparklez) March 10, 2018

Right now, Fortnite is facing a question of longevity. How long can it maintain its digital dominance? This week, it got a good piece of news as far as its future popularity is concerned: Its developer, Epic Games, will give away $100,000,000 million in prize money during the first officially-sanctioned season of Fortnite competitive play.

"In the 2018 - 2019 season, Epic Games will provide $100,000,000 to fund prize pools for Fortnite competitions," reads a post on the Epic Games website. "We’re getting behind competitive play in a big way, but our approach will be different - we plan to be more inclusive, and...

Hotel of the Damned is waiting for you to check in. From Uncork'd Entertainment, Hotel of the Damned will be released on VOD on December 6th. Also in today's Highlights: a trailer for Nathan Ambrosioni's Therapy, premiering exclusively on Shudder, Kickstarter details for the slasher/whodunit short film White Knuckle, a teaser video and release details for Johnny Dagger's horror novel, Neverlasting,

Hotel of the Damned VOD Release Details and Trailer: "Make your reservation with the Hotel of the Damned this December via Uncork’d Entertainment.

No use hanging up a ‘Do Not Disturb’ sign here. After a car accident and stranded in the middle of nowhere, an ex-con and his daughter find themselves in an abandoned hotel, populated by sub-human cannibalistic creatures. Is it check-out time, already!?

Peter Dobson (The Frighteners) and Louis Mandylor (My Big Fat Greek Wedding) star in a Bobby Barbacioru film, out December 6th on VOD.

Freddy, Bonnie, Chica, and Foxy are waiting to be the star of your nightmares! Funko's Five Nights at Freddy's action figures and Mystery Minis will be available in December! Also, check out the details and trailer for Machinima's Happy Wheels series and Thin Air book details and ghost prank video.

Five Nights at Freddy's Figures and Mystery Minis: From Funko: "Action Figures: Five Nights at Freddy's

The Five Nights at Freddy's gang is returning to our Action Figure line!

Don't be fooled by Funtime Foxy's cheerful appearance -- Freddy, Bonnie, Chica, and Foxy are in their terrifying Nightmare form!

Collect them all to assemble a special Nightmarionne!

Coming in December!

Mystery Minis: Five Night's at Freddy's

These Mystery Minis glow in the dark! Freddy Fazbear and his creepy crew of animatronic buddies are coming this winter!

Coming in December!”

Images from Funko:

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Machinima's Happy Wheels Animated Series: Press Release: "Burbank,...

After pledging to emphasize more gaming content at this year’s VidCon, the world’s largest online conference has announced a bevy of programming initiatives to spotlight the popular category.

This year, an entire hall at the Anaheim Convention Center -- as well as two stages sponsored by Snickers -- will be transformed into a dedicated Gaming Hall, where attendees can watch panels as well as live gameplay. Highlights will include: a panel titled Creating With a Community featuring KittyPlaysGames and Aphmau; a Streamers Unite panel starring Aureylian and Jordan Maron; a performance by the musician Nate Wants to Battle; and a PJSaltan Competition presented by Twitch.

Other topics covered in panels and performances will include: Making A Career Past YouTube Gaming; The Old School Is The Best School; Gaming For Good; Gender In Gaming: Shake It Off; Indie vs. Aaa...Fight!; a Live Hot Pepper Gaming Challenge; Chiptune, Guitars,...

Jordan Maron’s mobile gaming company Xreal can now get funding directly from fans. The YouTube star, better known as CaptainSparklez, has partnered with StartEngine, a Kickstarter-like investing platform, to help raise capital for his mobile gaming brand.

Founded by entrepreneur Ron Miller and Activision co-founder Howard Marks, StartEngine is a crowdfunding platform which facilitates investments between individuals and private companies. Prior to June 19, the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) didn’t allow private companies to accept equity crowdfunding. This meant startups and entrepreneurs without connections to high net worth investors and firms often struggled to raise capital, no matter how viable and potentially lucrative their business ideas were.

Now that the SEC has implemented a new set of rules called Regulation A+, equity crowdfunding is possible for small businesses and startups. StartEngine’s platform is at the center of this new fundraising opportunity, helping businesses get the money they need to operate.

In 1989, Electronic Arts, hereafter EA, released a game called Sim City, which tasked you with running a city as mayor and council. It got great reviews, and helped cement simulation games as a genre in the video game industry. It was one of the reasons that The Sims, released in 2000, continues to be one of the best-selling franchises of all time.

Sim City went through it’s growth stages, every iteration building on the franchise and shaping, or terraforming, if you will, the game and what simulation games could be. Then, in 2003, after the release of Sim City 4, the series went dark (Sim City Societies doesn’t count.) The Sims continued to drive the ‘Sim” aspect of EA, and all was well.

Then, in 2013, SimCity was released, amid a flurry of issues. The game was originally to be played online only, with a strong emphasis on gamers coming together to build a region together,...