Patreon is taking a page from Reddit's book. Now, podcasters, artists, writers and other creators on the subscription-focused creator platform will be able to assign community members as moderators as the platform expands its product offering.
All content on Patreon is subject to the company's own guidelines, but different creators may have specific community rules, such as no posting spoilers, and having multiple moderators could help develop and enforce expectations. Previously, creators could assign teammates with certain permissions; This update allows creators to distribute some of their community's moderation work as they see fit. Like subreddits with their own rules and teams, Patreon moderators will be tasked with keeping the community running smoothly.
“This puts the power in the hands of creators to develop specific do's and don'ts for their own authentic, nuanced communities,” the company wrote in a blog post.
The change comes as Patreon continues to expand the way fans can interact with their favorite creators, which, in turn, could create more places where moderation is necessary.
The community chat room feature first announced in 2023, for example, will also be expanded starting today. At launch, Discord-like chats were relatively limited: they were available only on mobile devices and to paid subscribers. Starting today, users can access chats via the web, and Patreon will also test the ability for creators to open chat rooms so their unpaid patrons can participate as well. Creators will also be able to record short video responses to use in chat rooms in response to fan messages.
Patreon introduced chats around the same time it underwent a major rebrand and expanded its product offerings last fall. The platform has been a leader in community-funded creators and exclusive subscription-only content, but it has set its sights on all the other places where fans interact with content creators.
In addition to subscribing to creators on Patreon, being a fan means you can chat on Discord with other subscribers, purchase digital products on Etsy, or follow a creator's public posts on x. Recent Patreon updates point to those additional interactions through offers such as chat rooms, ability to sell products natively, and free subscription tiers. As a result, the company has gradually moved away from being strictly a subscription app to something resembling an all-in-one space for content creators.
