Ad-Free Video App Portal Creates Subscription Payment Option

The video app Portal has made a name for itself by refusing all ad revenue, but that doesn't mean it has no monetization options. Video creators could already solicit tips or charge for access to specific videos. Now, the app has added a third option: paid subscriptions.

Video creators are free to set their subscription price, and fans are billed monthly. Mass Lab, the creator of Portal, takes 4.5%. Any video creator is free to use the subscription option; it's not limited to creators with a certain number of followers. The Wrap first broke the news.

Portal is currently only available for iOS. It debuted in November after receiving $4.2 million in seed funding from Mark Cuban, Day One Ventures, and others. At the time, Variety quoted co-founder and CEO Jonathan Swerdlin as saying, “Advertising is the biggest scam on the Internet. Platforms make billions. Creators earn rubbish. Culture conforms to algorithms and people are commodified into a product. Portal is a reset button and a brand new way to view and value digital content.”

The app pitches creators a message of empowerment. Besides claiming a larger share of the revenue they bring in, they don't need to worry about brand sensitivities or getting cut off if some of their content is deemed controversial.

With subscriptions available, Swerdlin said the app's three-part payment model is now complete.