Cenk Uygur, the founder of the digital news media company The Young Turks (TYT), is testing out a new way to distribute content from the news company with micropayments via Portal, a recently launched streaming app.
Portal, which launched earlier this year, doesn’t run ads on its platform. Instead, content creators can decide to make their content available for free or for a one-time donation of 10 cents or more. Users can donate by buying in-app currency known as “coins,” which cost 1 cent each. In the case of TYT, they have priced their content between 1-2 coins
After three days on the platform, TYT has posted 16 videos, with its top video having earned 1,020 coins, or about $10. While the money made off of the videos posted to Portal isn’t anything to brag about, it is a pleasant surprise for the company, which is posting the same content for free on Facebook and YouTube.
The Young Turks had no comment on the matter when contacted by TheWrap.
Though its accumulation of “coins” are currently low, TYT may find more luck on Portal as the platform ages. As of right now, like all new platforms, Portal is facing the chicken-and-egg scenario of onboarding creators and gaining an audience.
[Update] The content being posted by TYT to Portal is not members-only content, as stated in an original version of this article. All content TYT posts to Portal can be accessed for free on the company’s social media platforms, including YouTube and Facebook.