Kamidu

⚠️Important Info: Patreon Livestream 18-7-24⚠️

Added 2024-07-19 16:03:07 +0000 UTC

Thank you for waiting on this write-up of Patreon‟s policy livestream of Thursday 18th July 2024.

I‟ll add the link to the archived version of the stream here when they send it over to me.

As was the case with December 2023's stream, this will be a summarisation of the hour-long stream.

So this entry isn‟t too long, I‟ll omit the parts I feel are irrelevant like the upcoming “possible TikTok banned in the US” thing, and a lot of the Creator Hub stuff regarding burnout, and dealing with controversy and building a community, etc. This will only focus on the policy part that affects all users of Patreon. As always, you can read these policy guidelines here: https://www.patreon.com/policy/guidelines

All images will be saved as attachments to download at their original size.

A text-only file will also be available.

The stream went as such:

The hosts began stating that

“the policy updates are not an overhaul of the old-style Community Guidelines but are more a re-design to better align with Patreon‟s new 'Creator-first' rebrand.”

This is based on feedback Patreon has received from Creators.

However, these policies apply to both Creators and fans using Patreon and its services.

The fallout from March’s policy update (which I myself covered in this post) was addressed.

Regarding... one weighty issue, to put it euphemistically, I'll combine the response into one paragraph as someone quite late into the stream asked:

Regarding the issue of... animal-folk and a certain taboo... Patreon again raised the issue of consent. Again, for clarity, I’ll include the more comprehensive answer provided to a question someone later asked in the stream, namely:

There was a fairly long fixation on AI (artificial intelligence), which was raised as a concern back in December 2023. This will be expanded upon, but initially, it was clarified what Patreon meant by “photorealistic artificial images”, illustrating as such:

On a tangentially related note, there was a reminder that all Adult/18+ creators featuring certain works with a specific intent of stimulating the lower baser emotions featuring real humans must use the new Patreon consent form: https://support.patreon.com/hc/en-us/articles/11245019098509-Consent-form-for-participants-in-Adult-18-works

It was stressed that Patreon itself would not ask for these forms, but they are a highly-recommended insurance policy. Should Patreon be requested by a third party to provide evidence for legal pursuits, a Content Creator and Patreon can use the forms to prove all parties consented to have their images/videos on Patreon.

When a photographer asked the hosts about whether they had to use Patreon’s form specifically (as they have their own), the hosts said:

‘The Patreon form has been tailor-made in response to payment processors’ requests (correct as of May 2024) and all Adult/18+ Creators should be using it effective immediately (though this policy won’t be applied retroactively)’.

The contentious issue is with AI-generated content, predominantly on the visual aspect and real people being manipulated without their knowledge or consent.

As was illustrated here:

Patreon’s policies will evolve alongside the technology.

When someone asked:

To summarise a lengthy response:

The main issue was that due to the rapid development of the technology, it‟s no longer as easily discernable for the average person to differentiate genuine visual media of real human beings from artificially generated media depicting as such. And as such, Patreon want to ensure the safety and consent of all parties involved in 18+ content productions. And by extension, not endanger unsuspecting peoples as both originators and viewers. As such, illustrated here:

For the present (correct as of July 2024), AI-generated chat bots engaging in 18+ text- or audio-based role play (so think Replika pre-2023) is still permitted as long as the content still remains within Patreon’s guidelines.

Patreon’s official stance on AI as a whole is that they’re taking a very measured thoughtful approach. Patreon recognises the potential concerns people have about AI, but supports creativity and respects creator rights.

In response to someone asking:

How does Patreon intend to tackle the issue of AI being trained with unlicensed material, such other creators’ art? Would someone be permitted to take my art, train their algorithm with it and then upload their “creations” to Patreon?

It was stated that Patreon has denied AI data scrapers like OpenAI access to the platform’s servers. Therefore, no works posted on Patreon can be used to train AI or Machine-learning programs. Patreon does not allow unauthorised use of others’ works.

Suspicions about people infringing on others’ works for profit can be reported to Patreon here: https://support.patreon.com/hc/en-us/requests/new?ticket_form_id=360000370832

Information about issuing a DMCA if anything conclusive has been determined can be found here: https://support.patreon.com/hc/en-us/articles/208377833-How-do-I-submit-a-DMCA-notification-of-claimed-infringement-to-Patreon

To briefly go over something the hosts detailed late into the stream regarding “the incorporation of boundaries and information shared during cases of DMCA” someone raised, the hosts said:

Patreon is legally obligated to comply with all DMCA requests and will co-operate with the claimant by sharing only what is asked for in relation to the content being called into question. This does not include the sharing of personal data about the Creator as this would contravene privacy protection laws. In a DMCA dispute, Patreon will duly inform the claimant and the respondent of what information is being requested, what the proceedings will be and the respondent’s rights. More information about this can be found in the Help Centre.

What followed was the Q&A (Question and Answer) session. Some of the questions raised by participants both on and off-stream were answered and covered earlier in this post. But something that caught my attention was a person asking:

The hosts representing Patreon half-answered this with the following:

Patreon is restructuring the Appeals process and is seeking feedback from Content Creators.

As illustrated here:
They define what constitutes as such in the Policy Guidelines.

The rest of the stream I haven‟t yet mentioned was dedicated to various odds-and-ends that I‟ll go over in a separate post.
To echo what was said at the very end of the stream, you can reach out to Patreon's Policy Team directly via email at creatorpolicy@patreon.com.