Patreon is going to let you gift subscriptions

Patreon is gearing up to allow gifting on its subscription platform, alongside a host of new features to help content creators build their communities. Artists, writers, podcasters, and other content creators will also soon be able to sell individual posts and even set a countdown clock for the release of new work.

“Gifting is one of the all-time most requested tools for creators on Patreon — and now it’s in the works,” says the Patreon team in a blog post. “We’re testing the ability to gift membership to fans for a set amount of time.” The gifting feature will be available in a new promotions tab on the subscription-focused creator platform and will be part of other new tools for discounted products and automated offers.

Creators will also be able to open up their community chat sections to all free and paid members, alongside the new countdown clock that also includes a live chat feature. Promoting content is also getting a little easier, with auto-generated shareable clips that can be used on other social networks.

All of these changes are “coming next” to Patreon, but there are no promises on exactly when they will arrive. Patreon is making these improvements because the company sees a shift happening in the creator economy, where the follower model has increasingly been disrupted by algorithmically curated feeds.

“Creators want a place where people who sign up to see their future work actually see it,” says Patreon. “Creators have been playing by platforms’ rules, but they’re ready to play by their own. And that’s what we’re here to help them do.”