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YouTube BrandConnect

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YouTube BrandConnect
Current logo as a subsidiary of YouTube
Company typePrivate[1]
Founded2013
Headquarters
Santa Monica, California[1]
,
United States
Area servedWorldwide
FoundersAgnes Kozera, and David Kierzkowski[1]
IndustryInfluencer marketing
Employees11-50[1]
Websitewww.famebit.com

YouTube BrandConnect (formerly FameBit) is an interactive entertainment company founded in 2013 and headquartered in Santa Monica, California.

The company develops and maintains an Influencer Marketing link sharing platform. As of 2016, the company has been a subsidiary of Google, grouped under their YouTube division.[2]

History

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As independent company

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FameBit was formed in 2013 by high school friends Agnes Kozera, and David Kierzkowski. Kierzkowski had previously co-founded the digital marketing platform TapClicks.[3] He was approached by Kozera who was the founder of SeasonsBox, a subscription based gift delivery service, which had used social media influencers for advertising.[4] The two developed FameBit as a link sharing platform which allowed companies to post offers to influencers.[5][6]

In February 2014 FameBit was one of two Canadian based companies accepted into 500 Startups venture fund.[7]

By 2015 FameBit had signed up about 9,000 YouTubers, and had run about 1,600 campaigns for about 1200 brands. At the time the average subscriber count for a FameBit Influencer was 46,000.[8]

By the end of the 2015 that number had risen to 21,000 across 6 social media platforms (Vine, Twitter, Facebook, Tumblr, Instagram, & YouTube)[9]

By 2016, FameBit had been used in the creation of about 25,000 branded videos, with an estimated 2 billion minutes of viewing time.[10]

The new features also cover a creator partnerships hub for advertisers in 2025, along with new capabilities to find creators and track the results of sponsored videos. YouTube also unveiled Open Call, a new feature that lets advertisers who want to participate publish their campaign briefs and see submissions from creators in the YouTube Partner Program, in June 2025.[11][12]

Acquisition by Google

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On October 11, 2016, Google acquired Famebit, for what was later disclosed to be US$36 million. At the time of purchase, FameBit claimed 50,000 registered users. Google planned to merge the platform within their YouTube division.[13][14][15]

Since being acquired by Google, FameBit has allowed marketers to retarget videos made on FameBit to viewers via Google's Ads.[16]

In 2020, FameBit shut down its self-service program which allowed creators to independently find brands to work with.[17]

On June 16, 2020, the company rebranded as YouTube BrandConnect.[18]

In June 2020, YouTube revealed that the brand of its branded-content marketplace, FameBit, would be renamed YouTube BrandConnect. The platform aims to facilitate a connection between eligible creators and advertisers and enable ad creators to manage campaigns for their brands, and to give advertisers an avenue to measure campaign performance..[19]

YouTube Creator Partnerships is a new platform that was launched in 2026 by YouTube, which combines YouTube BrandConnect and the YouTube Creator Partnerships Hub. They merged creation-discovery and brand-collaboration features with advertiser features in YouTube Studio and Google's advertising platforms.[20]

As announced in March 2026, YouTube will combine its BrandConnect and Creator Partnerships Hub into a single entity, called YouTube Creator Partnerships. The single platform brings together creator tools to YouTube Studio and advertiser tools to Google Ads and Display & Video 360. Current BrandConnect offerings will remain the same under the new name, YouTube.YouTube said that the current BrandConnect offerings would remain unchanged under the new name, YouTube.[21][22]

Business model

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FameBit acts as a platform for companies to post requests for social media content creators to advertise products and services, for a negotiable fee.[23] FameBit receives 10% of this fee.[24]

Controversy

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FameBit has been criticized by brands for allowing YouTubers to join without verifying their followers. FameBit has also been criticized by Content Creators for banning them from the platform due to brand disputes.[25]

Several employees have claimed that FameBit promotes a toxic work environment, with 3 out of 4 of their Glassdoor reviews awarding the company 1 star.[26]

References

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  1. 1 2 3 4 "FameBit AngelList Profile". angel.co.
  2. ↑ "Google Acquires Famebit to Connect YouTube Creators with Brands". TechCrunch.com. 11 October 2016.
  3. ↑ "Starup Dreams Come True As FameBit Engineers Head To California". therecord.com. 14 February 2017.
  4. ↑ "FameBit turns any business brand into a Youtube star". itbusiness.com. 16 January 2014.
  5. ↑ "Bloomberg Profile on David Kierzkowski". bloomberg. 13 June 2023.
  6. ↑ "Agnes Kozera on small budgets and big results". StreamDaily. Archived from the original on 2017-11-16. Retrieved 2018-02-03.
  7. ↑ "2 CANADIAN TEAMS MAKE THE 500 STARTUPS CUT: FAMEBIT AND VENUESPOT". betakit. 3 February 2014.
  8. ↑ "FameBit's Long Tail Of Creators Grow To More Than 9k YouTubers". techcrunch.com. 17 April 2015.
  9. ↑ "FameBit Banks On The Little Guy". streamdaily.com. Archived from the original on 2018-03-26. Retrieved 2018-02-03.
  10. ↑ "Google Acquires FameBit". variety.com. 11 October 2016.
  11. ↑ Hsieh Nikolic, Melissa (May 8, 2025). "Bringing the power of YouTube Creators to more brands". Google.
  12. ↑ Hsieh Nikolic, Melissa (June 17, 2025). "YouTube is streamlining hiring creators for brands with open call". Google.
  13. ↑ "YouTube FameBit Branded Content Product Promotion". theverge.com. 11 October 2016.
  14. ↑ "Startup Dreams Come True As Famebit Engineers Head To California". therecord.com. 14 February 2017.
  15. ↑ "Publishers Acquiring Marketing Agencies Surge". adage.com. 17 January 2017.
  16. ↑ "YouTube's FameBit New Sales Boss Expanded Platform Post". marketingland.com. 25 October 2017.
  17. ↑ "YouTube's FameBit Shutters Self-Service Influencer Marketing Platform To Prioritize In-House Matchmaking". Tubefilter. 2020-05-13. Retrieved 2021-05-20.
  18. ↑ "YouTube's FameBit rebrands as YouTube BrandConnect, shuts down its self-service program". finance.yahoo.com. 16 June 2020. Retrieved 2021-05-20.
  19. ↑ Scott-Green, Henry; Sobel, Lori (16 June 2020). "Introducing YouTube BrandConnect, a platform for Creators and Brands to collaborate". YouTube Blog. Retrieved 11 October 2026.
  20. ↑ "YouTube Creator Partnerships: A new era for brand and creator collaborations". YouTube Blog. Retrieved 11 October 2026.
  21. ↑ Hsieh Nikolic, Melissa (March 23, 2026). "Discover a new era of brand and creator partnerships on YouTube". YouTube Blog.
  22. ↑ "Introducing YouTube Creator Partnerships – A Unified Place for Brand Deals on YouTube". YouTube Help Community. March 23, 2026.
  23. ↑ "YouTube's Marketing And Content Platform Nets Startups Millions". techcrunch. 23 June 2014.
  24. ↑ "FameBit Overview". influencermarketinghub.com. 28 February 2017.
  25. ↑ "Famebit Seedy Underbelly Influencer Marketing Tale". linkedin.com.
  26. ↑ "FameBit Glassdoor Profile". glassdoor.com. 24 October 2025.
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