With the exponential growth of digital-first businesses during the pandemic, content creators have become an increasingly important part of the global economy, and their impact is only growing. Last year, the global digital content creation market had a projected valuation of $13.4 billion dollars, and it’s expected to balloon to $38 billion by 2030.

However, the current state of content creation is far from perfect. Traditional production platforms and business models have been slow to adapt to the changing landscape, leaving content creators with limited options for monetizing their work. One potential solution is Web3, a decentralized platform that allows content creators to directly interact with their audience and generate revenue, which was a central theme of Future Summit: Austin, presented by Mastercard.

It’s not hyperbolic to say that Web3 could revolutionize the content creation industry and provide content creators with more opportunities to succeed in business than ever before. “There are five billion connected consumers, businesses, and people around the world, and the possibility of that and what it can create is totally unimaginable—the opportunity is vast,” Nicki Grant, SVP of North American Consumer Marketing for Mastercard, shared during a panel on Web3 and Beyond at Future Summit.

Specifically, Web3 can provide more transparent payment systems, more efficient platforms for content distribution and promotion, and the potential for content creators to develop new and innovative business models. “Web3 is where we come in and create the story,” says RhondaX, founder of RXVR Brand, an agency that helps businesses find their digital footprint in the metaverse and the creator of Mastercard's metaverse-driven Small Business City. “We’re building our own worlds and creating our own narratives. It’s the era of the creatives. It’s like a foreign language, but it’s something that’s our future.” Here’s how Web3 benefits content creators.

Web3 will make it easier for content creators to get paid

One of the greatest challenges facing content creators is receiving payment for their work, and Web3 promises to overhaul this process. By leveraging the power of blockchain and smart contracts, Web3 enables users to receive secure and transparent payments directly. The use of blockchain technology ensures that all transactions are securely and immutably recorded on a distributed ledger, providing a transparent and accountable payment system.

While we may not all be conducting payroll on the blockchain just yet, as of now, there are plenty of ways that digital payments can make life much easier for small business owners and content creators who work with multiple businesses. Whether it's establishing your online presence, learning how to protect your business from cyber threats, or enhancing your digital operations, check out the resources found on Mastercard's Digital Doors to better understand your strengths and weaknesses and get customized recommendations to help secure your digital world.

There, you’ll learn about how Industry 4.0 is defining the future of business payments, leading to worldwide payments reform, as well as how services like real-time payments, B2B payments, automation innovations, and ePayables are rewriting the payment playbook.

Web3 will provide more efficient platforms for content distribution and promotion

Another challenge facing content creators is the distribution and promotion of their work. Many platforms that distribute content today are often controlled by centralized third-party intermediaries (think: Google, Instagram, TikTok), which can limit the reach of content creators’ work.

By leveraging the power of decentralization, however, Web3 enables users to interact directly with each other without the need for a middleman. This reduces costs and increases the speed of content distribution and promotion.

In addition, Web3 can provide content creators with access to a wider audience and new markets by leveraging the power of community. "This is something that we've never experienced before where you're coming into a brand, you're coming into a community, and you actually have a say and what you're going to do there," says Jules Dudko, founder and CEO of FrequenC, a Web3 agency. "You can build along the founders, you can get as involved as you want."

Web3 will offer content creators new and innovative business models

Because of its decentralized operating system and direct-to-consumer capabilities, Web3 opens up a world of new opportunities for content creators to explore when it comes to their business strategies, such as tokenized subscriptions, pay-per-view content, and microtransactions.

“You may have heard about universal basic income, or what might it look like for us to solve poverty through universal basic income,” says Riana Lynn, founder of Journey Foods. “Well, Web3 allows us to do that.”

Web3 will also help creators like artists and musicians take more ownership over their work, and initiatives like the Web3-based Mastercard Artists Accelerator program are poised to help them learn how. This first-of-its-kind curriculum will teach both artists and fans how to build (and own) their brand—from minting NFTs on the blockchain to representing themselves in the virtual world.

In all, Web3 promises to revolutionize the way content creators interact with their audiences, monetize their work, and achieve their desired success. “It’s really about being in a space of imagination and innovation,” says Lynn. “What is the world we want to make? And then using these tools to enable that environment.”