Dropout (media company)

In early September 2018, CollegeHumor began teasing the beginning of a new subscription service, putting hidden keyword clues on their website and in their videos. Entering these keywords into a website owned by CollegeHumor allowed users to see clips of videos, audio, and images that implied the beginning of a new CollegeHumor project.

On September 26, 2018, Dropout officially launched in the United States.[1][2] CollegeHumor's CEO, Rich Cusick, announced the service as a "TV-MA version of CollegeHumor", allowing fans to dive deeper into pre-established characters and shows from the primary CollegeHumor YouTube channel.[3] CollegeHumor's Chief Creative Officer, Sam Reich, also claims that the founding of Dropout was in response to difficulty in receiving advertising dollars on traditional media platforms for mature content.[4]

Dropout officially launched native iOS and Android apps for its service in December 2018, allowing users to watch shows and also cast to smart TVs. Comics, especially the chat stories, were integrated into the app.[5]

After IAC sold CollegeHumor to Reich in 2020, Dropout ended production on scripted shows and focused on unscripted shows such as Um, Actually, Dimension 20, and Game Changer, briefly producing these series through online conference during the COVID-19 pandemic.

During the July-November 2023 SAG-AFTRA strike, Dropout series such as Dimension 20, Game Changer and Um, Actually were initially shut down.[6] Reich stated:

Because we aren't associated with the AMPTP, it's possible we may be able to reach an interim agreement with SAG that allows us to continue to produce content during the strike. But we'll only do that, obviously, if we get the blessing of the union and the buy-in of our performers. If not, we have enough content in the can to last us a little past the end of the year. [...] As for me, I intend to honor my union's position that I not promote SAG productions as a performer – even if they are produced by me. That means that I won't personally be promoting any of our shows for the time being.[7]

In August 2023, Reich announced that all Dropout shows resumed production as it was determined that their "New Media Agreement for Non-Dramatic Programming" was actually a non-struck SAG-AFTRA contract.[8][9][10]

Also in August 2023, NPR stated that "Dropout has not shared their official subscriber count, but Reich says it's in the mid-hundreds of thousands. He's very aware that doesn't come close to the hundreds of millions of subscribers that large media companies have, but, to him, that's not necessarily a problem. ... Though they're not required to by unions, he said Dropout is working to become one of the first streamers to pay residuals to their writers, actors, and crew members".[11] Dropout's overall subscriber count almost doubled during 2023.[10]

Dropout officially retired all CollegeHumor branding in September 2023.[12]

In 2023, Dropout shared its profit with its employees and other workers.[13][10]

Dropout's show Very Important People was the People's Voice Winner in the video comedy category at the 2024 Webby Awards.[14]

Dropout launched with a beta price of $3.99 per month, for the first three months of the service. After December 2018, the price rose to a three tiered option, with monthly memberships for $5.99/month, semi-annual memberships for $4.99/month, and annual memberships for $3.99/month.[15] As of 4 January 2022, new subscribers paid $5.99 monthly or $59.99 yearly, while those who already subscribed prior to that date were charged $4.99 monthly or $47.99 yearly.[16] Users are also able to access Dropout content through YouTube via the join function. The company has justified the pricing model as allowing them to create content without being dependent on, or beholden to, requests from advertisers.[17]

As of December 2018, visitors to the service spent on average 31 minutes per visit, and visited on average 3.5 times per week.[5] Throughout 2019, Dropout began to experiment with more live streaming versions of their shows, through using Twitch and podcast-like formats. At the end of 2023, the average user subscribed for 18 months.[10]

In August 2019, CollegeHumor also began to partner with Facebook to offer Dropout content via paid video subscriptions on Facebook's platform.[18]

In addition to original series, Dropout offered videos produced by CollegeHumor 72 hours before they were released to the public. Previously, a subscriber-only Discord server was included as a service, but the server has since been opened to non-subscribers as well. Dropout also has a store which sells merchandise (such as shirts, stickers, and mugs) related to shows on the platform.[19][20]