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TL;DR:
Traditional franchises face challenges with attention drift and passive fandom.
Internet-native franchises turn fans into active participants, not just consumers.
Blockchain enables new ownership models, aligning fan and franchise interests.
Fan-created content can organically grow franchises through feedback loops.
Future entertainment may blur lines between creators and fans.
In a world drowning in content, the real scarcity isn't in production - it's in attention.
This reality is reshaping the entertainment landscape, pushing the industry to evolve beyond traditional, top-down franchises towards more engaging, internet-native models. The secret sauce? Bringing the audience into the fold.
Let's break down how big, established franchises like Disney have been playing this game:
1. Attention Compounding: The Sequel Machine
Why are we seeing Despicable Me 4 and yet another Marvel flick (Deadpool 3, the 34th in the franchise, if you're counting) this summer? Simple: it's all about compounding attention. These entertainment juggernauts have mastered the art of creating cultural objects that can store latent attention and reactivate it at will.
Think about it - in a world where everyone's fighting for eyeballs, being able to tap into pre-existing awareness is like having a cheat code. It's been a winning strategy for decades, and it still works (just look at the Deadpool & Wolverine hype). But there are signs that some of these tentpole franchises might be reaching saturation point. Maybe today's 15-year-olds aren't as stoked about Iron Man as their counterparts were 15 years ago?
Disney's got a special sauce here. They're not just compounding attention movie by movie - it's happening at the brand level. You expect Moana to be good because Frozen was a banger. Pixar's got a similar thing going on. Building to this level of brand trust is impressive (and took decades).
2. Brute Force: The Capital Blitz
Even with characters everyone and their grandma knows, cutting through the noise isn't a walk in the park. So what do these franchises do? They throw money at the problem. A lot of money.
Take last year's Barbie movie. Box office smash, right? $1.5B in ticket sales. But here's the kicker - they spent $145M making it and an estimated $150M marketing it.
This creates a feedback loop in Hollywood. Sequels feel safer because you're tapping into an existing fanbase, which helps justify those eye-watering marketing budgets. It's a high-stakes game of using capital to create a wide top of funnel, all leading to a pretty shallow, one-dimensional experience: consume and spend.
No matter how much passion you have as a fan, your options to engage and participate are limited. Usually, this fan energy is directed to third-party places like fan fiction sites. The amount of writing (and combined writing and reading hours produced) is a clear signal that fans wants...more.
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For new players in the game, that capital-heavy approach just isn't sustainable. (Let's be real, it's probably not sustainable for the big guys either in the long run.)
So, these new franchise have to chart a different course.
I'm talking about internet-native franchises. These aren't brands adapting to the internet - they were born in it, molded by it. Mr. Beast is one of the prime examples.
The next, natural step after internet-native is onchain-native entertainment franchises.
After the dust settled on the NFT hype train of '21, a few projects emerged with real onchain franchise potential. Pudgy Penguins and Doodles are notable examples.
Julian Holguin, Doodles' CEO (and former Billboard president) describes their vision:
this is the key part:
"real communities are not just passive viewers, they're part of the story."
These new franchises aren't about creating content and serving it top-down. They're building participatory, cultural experiences that give fans a real sense of belonging.
Doodle have a lot of things going on:
- bought an animation studio (Golden Wolf)
- big brand partnerships (Adidas, G-Shock, Crocs)
- about to drop their first animated production
- experimenting with IRL events and experiences
- releasing music + music videos
It's like they're speedrunning the creation of a multimedia franchise, but with a twist - the community is baked into the flywheel from day one.
Here's where it gets interesting. These onchain franchises are marrying two powerful concepts: community activation and ownership.
Done right, this combo has the potential to capture and redirect all that fan energy that usually just dissipates in traditional franchise models. It's about bringing fans closer to the franchise, making them feel like they're part of it.
Imagine giving a fan who owns a Doodle character access to tools where they can create custom emojis or stickers. They're going to want to use those creations, right? And every time they do, they're essentially marketing the brand. It's user-generated content, distribution, fan engagement and brand marketing rolled into one.
(From "The Spectrum of Entertainment Participation")
(You could even take it further, letting fans create derivative stories or content using tools like Sekai)
This creates a powerful feedback loop:
1. Fans want to participate
2. They're given tools to create
3. They want to show off their creations
4. This creates exposure and feeds the network effects of the core IP
Not only does it bring fans closer, but it creates a viable alternative to the brute force via capital approach to the attention marketplace.
By creating experiences that capture fan energy and use it to grow the franchise, these new players are finding a sustainable growth path. They're going from niche to mainstream without burning billions on ads.
It's a brave new world out there. The lines between creator and fan are blurring. It’s also notable that 8% of Gen Z consumers consider themselves “pro fans” (meaning they earn from their fandom) according to this recent YouTube report on fandom.
Ownership is becoming more than just a metaphor. And in this world of content abundance, the franchises that figure out how to truly bring their audience in might just be the ones that win the game.
The old guards of entertainment should be taking notes. The audience isn't just here to watch anymore - they're here to play.
As always, reach out to me on Farcaster if you have feedback or are working one something cool you want to discuss.
