Pocket.watch partners with Jellysmack for US$25 million creator fund

The fund is aimed at kids and family content creators to support them through challenges relating to monetization and unpredictable algorithms.
March 17, 2023

LA-based studio pocket.watch is boosting the kidfluencer space through a new funding partnership with New York-based creator-optimization platform Jellysmack.

Under this fund, Jellysmack is investing US$25 million to provide financing to pocket.watch’s roster of kids and family content creators. The goal, the companies say, is to create “stability and predictability” to pocket.watch’s partner creators so they can more confidently invest in production of content. As an example, partner channel The Stella Show (1.65 million subscribers) has already accessed the fund to hire a writer and director for its content. 

The fund elegantly addresses needs for both companies. Jellysmack president Sean Atkins said in a release that pocket.watch’s specialty in kids and family provides an entry point into “a whole new sector of content creators,” for Jellysmack, which already reps a wide variety of mostly adult-skewing influencers (such as MrBeast) with a revenue model based on share of advertising.

Pocket.watch, on the other hand, has a fast-growing portfolio of creators in the space and the ability to directly sell ads against their content on YouTubeKids. But, as the release notes, this content and its creators face unique challenges in terms of monetization. 

Jellysmack analysis revealed that YouTube-first creators in the kids and family genre are more prone to the effects of “shifting algorithms and revenue fluctuations,” and navigating tougher regulations around the monetization of content aimed at kids. 

This, in turn, makes the relentless demands of YouTube-based production harder for creators to manage as revenue ebbs and flows. But by solving the financing gap, both companies now unlock more value from partners.

“We did a tremendous amount of research into finding the best company to partner with on this new fund,” said Chase Landau, SVP creator partnerships, pocket.watch, in a release. “This partnership adds a whole new dimension to the value we can create for this unique set of creators.”

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