GoPro has made yet another bold move in its push to become a media giant. Zander Lurie, the company’s SVP of media, said the company wants to build an entertainment business that would complement its hardware and accessories business. GoPro users upload more than 15,000 videos to YouTube each day, and now the company is giving its users a solid reason to upload more.
How much will GoPro pay for your content
The action camera maker announced Wednesday that it would reward users by offering them up to $5 million annually for their creativity. Lurie said GoPro community members already share cool content online in large numbers. The company is just trying to reward the community members and grow its brand. A quick search for the term “GoPro” on YouTube returns about 23 million results.
Every week, the San Mateo-based company would promote award winners on its social channels. It will dole out $5,000 for edited video clips, $1,000 for raw video, and $500 for the best photo. The awards will be given in a variety of categories such as adventure, action, family, motorsports, music, science, travel, how-to, and animals. Notably, GoPro has excluded aerial footage as a standalone category. But Lurie assured users that footage captured from drones will likely fit into at least one of the existing categories.
Viral videos help GoPro sell more cameras
The contest is open now. Follow this link to submit your GoPro content. The action camera maker receives more than 100,000 videos and 60,000 photos every year just to be featured on its YouTube and other channels. The new rewards program will have a dual benefit for the company. One, it will help GoPro build a media business. And two, it can boost the sales of its Hero line of cameras.
Yes, the company has found that viral videos help it sell more products. Its camera sales rise significantly whenever its online videos go viral. Encouraging users to create and share more compelling content is likely to boost its hardware sales.
GoPro shares rose 1.25% to $28.44 in pre-market trading Thursday.
