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With established platforms like TikTok facing heavy restrictions and seemingly random bans, more creators are seeking ownership over their audience and content. Could we see a return to personal domains?
Could we be soon be seeing more Gen Zers creating websites and signing up for their own personal domains?
While many young people still use TikTok, Snapchat, Instagram and even Tumblr to create, post, consume and share content, more Gen Zers are seeking greater ownership over the media they curate and produce.
As business publication Entrepreneur reports, Gen Z are looking for ‘stability, ownership and control’ over their online presence. With random bans of platforms such as TikTok early in 2025, frequent data leaks, and a general sense that the future can be uncertain on these large sites, there is a greater desire for audience control and guaranteed stability.
This market gap presents a key opportunity for emerging brands and platforms that are seeking a younger audience; by offering security and actual agency over content, platforms can entice social media users that have become disillusioned with the transactional nature of established websites like Instagram and TikTok.
Take Substack, for example. A personal blogging website, Substack allows writers and publishers to offer different tiers of subscription services and paid content, giving them greater control over their articles without being at the mercy of algorithms.
In fact, Thred has been using the website for over six months to publish newsletters and think pieces. It’s served us well so far, and we can see why younger social media users would gravitate toward this type of structure.
This is nothing new, either. YouTubers have been using the site Patreon for many years. This platform gives creators a space for dedicated fans to pledge a certain amount of cash per month to support them. In return, they receive exclusive videos, early access to content, and can even get in touch personally with the creator to chat and provide feedback.
Garnering a greater sense of personal ownership over our media has also been prevalent across the adult entertainment industry.
OnlyFans has become synonymous with personal, explicit content, with some of its top names making hundreds of thousands a month. By posting to subscribers directly, there is no middle man or shady third-party company involved, with less room for exploitation than traditional adult websites. It has led to some bizarre stunts recently, mind.
Ownership is influencing sectors across various different industries, and the demand for improved ecosystems that can’t easily be taken away or shut down without warning is growing.
