More than a billion people tap into social media today.
But a new platform, Pheed, is getting a lot of buzz – because now people can make money with what they post on the web.
“Would I try it if I can make money? I think I would,” said Cleveland State student Jasmine Elder. “I wouldn’t be the person to pay, but I think I would charge people, I think I would, yeah.”
The website is similar to Facebook, Twitter and Instagram, said hip-hop artists Bobby Jaggerjack.
“The remix feature is kind of a like a Pheed’s version of a retweet for Twitter,” he said.
Yet, Jaggerjack said a few things make the site stand out, like the fact that users can copyright their material. They can also charge people to view their content. Pheed, for example, lets people broadcast a live pay-per-view event, where the user can charge $1.99 to $34.99 per view. Pheed will split proceeds with users.
Jaggerjack, 21, released two singles on iTunes this past year. He uses the site to get more fans. He started working in the music business recently, and on Pheed, he has more than 250 subscribers.
“I kind of just came out of the blue and made a mixed tape with DJ EV, a really big Cleveland DJ, and after that I’ve been just taking different things in, doing a lot of shows,” he said.
Pheed has soared in popularity ever since its launch late last year. The platform has a mobile app with more than a million users. Recently, it topped the iTunes charts for downloads, even beating out Facebook and Twitter.
The site’s popularity, reportedly, is due to teenagers and creative types, like Cleveland skateboarder Malcolm Willis.
“I definitely kind of put down Instagram and Twitter down a little bit, just for Pheed because it specifically gears toward skateboarding,” Willis said.
Willis is a part of a local skateboarding group, Lame Brotherhood. The group is small, with less than 10 members.
“You’re able to upload videos, which in my opinion is a lot better, being a skateboarder, so I can show off my talent, rather than through pictures,” said fellow skateboarder Justin Langanson.
The skateboarders hope that through video and networking, they can push their talents into professional skateboarding.
“I like it a lot. I like how it incorporates videos as well as music,” Langanson said. “It’s not like Instagram, which is strictly pictures. There’s a variety of things you’re able to do.”
“It’s got everything that everything else has, but it’s just like newer, and it has everything,” added skateboarder Mike Freiberg. “Everyone is moving to it, it’s going to be the next big thing.”