There's a new content creator subscription platform in town, and it's called Subs.com. Does it have what it takes to dethrone OnlyFans as the most-used subscription platform for individual content creators?
Well, one person certainly thinks so — Subs.com founder and CEO Tim Stokely, who founded OnlyFans alongside his brother back in 2016 before exiting in 2021. Now, as OnlyFans eyes a potential acquisition, Subs is looking to step in and fill what it sees as some major gaps in the space.
So What Is Subs.com?
At face value, Subs.com isn't conceptually different from platforms like OnlyFans or Patreon (or even Substack at this point). Content creators create a profile and post content to the platform, either for free, a subscription, or a mixture of both. Users can follow these creators and, depending on their level of subscription or financial contribution, get different types of content and degrees of access.
Subs is a mobile-first platform, meaning the majority of commerce, consumption, and interaction is meant to take place on a phone. This is a bit of a departure from other platforms where the desktop performance is still a big focus.
In terms of content limitations, Subs.com will allow a range of content, including adult content like OnlyFans. This is another departure from platforms like Twitch and Patreon. While OnlyFans allows all kinds of content and has thousands upon thousands of creators who make "safe for work" content in niches ranging from cooking to productivity to self help to fitness, it is certainly known primarily as a place for adult content creators to monetize followings.
So far there does appear to be a fairly specific focus on avoiding branding Subs as an OnlyFans competitor in terms of content. A press release calls it a "new global subscription platform built for all creators, from podcasters and athletes to musicians, influencers, adult creators and more."
Stokely adds, "There's a clear demand for a subscription platform that gives creators everything they need in one place. Creators have been telling me what they want, and that's exactly what we've built with Subs. It isn't just for one type of creator, it's for all creators."
So How Is Subs Different From Competitors Then?
If Subs.com has so much in common with existing options, why would anybody care to join it over one of the more established alternative platforms? Stokely says it comes down to a few main things — the first of which, is discoverability.
Stokely tells Business Insider that a huge knock against OnlyFans is how hard it is to actually grow within the platform. And this isn't specific to just OnlyFans or Fansly or Fanfix or Fanvue or...(you get the point). Both Patreon and Twitch have been publicly battling similar concerns, unleashing various social media-esque features to try to help users discover more content they may love from within the app.
Right now, most creators have to rely on social media, Reddit, and other outside platforms to push users to subscribe to them. Subs.com hopes to eliminate that issue right out of the gate.
New discoverability features include an Instagram-like "Explore" feed as well as a YouTube-esque "Shows" page. "Through its Shows feature, Subs offers a YouTube-style viewing experience, but with a creator's paid profile sitting directly behind the video," the platform says. "With just one click, viewers can unlock exclusive content, message the creator, or schedule a video call. By providing creators with a seamless way to monetize this traffic, Subs makes it easy for creators and celebrities to quickly convert their followers into paying subscribers (subs)."
Another key issue is turning free users into paid users, which Stokely said will be mitigated by the way these discoverability feeds work and other incentives.
Specific Features Of Subs.com:
- Explore - discovery feed helping creators reach new audiences
- Shows - host long-form videos, podcasts, and series with built-in discoverability
- 1:1 Audio and Video Calls - earn from real-time conversations with subscribers (something you can get on platforms like Cameo, but not on platforms like OnlyFans).
- Revenue Sharing - collaborate and split income with other creators
- Partner Program - two-tier referral system rewarding creators and agencies for driving growth
What To Look Out For
So what should creators look out for if they're considering hopping over to Subs.com? Because the platform allows adult content, it shares similar problems with accessibility as OnlyFans. Neither Apple nor Google allow pornography in their app stores, so users can't just easily download an app.
Instead, they have to run the platform as a web app and save it to their device for quick access. This also makes collecting payment just a little bit more difficult. It's not a deal-breaker (after all, OnlyFans has grown to its size despite these limitations), but it isn't an improvement over existing options.
Similar to OnlyFans, Subs takes a 20 percent cut from creators, which is either on the high side or low side depending on what you're comparing it to. Either way, it's not an improvement over its main competition. (The opportunity to earn referral income, though, is a cool perk).
And lastly, as with any new platform, you have to be aware that it could fail. That's the concern with any early adopters. And while having somebody like Stokely at the helm inspires more confidence since he's basically done this before, experience at the helm isn't a guarantee of future success. Just ask people who poured a lot of time into platforms like Sessions or Mixer.
Still, if you're tired of constantly trying to build your audience on one platform and convert them somewhere else, Subs could be worth the effort.