Why social-native shows are the future – and how brands can build an audience in this space

By Zach Blume, Co-founder & President, Portal A

When Quibi, YouTube Originals, and Snap Originals shut down in short succession, the takeaway seemed obvious: audiences weren’t ready to watch TV on social.

The narrative was wrong.

Audiences didn’t reject episodic storytelling on social — they rejected old formats, models, and talent repackaged for platforms that play by a different set of rules.

In the last five years, the demand for premium entertainment on YouTube, TikTok, and Instagram has surged. And viewers are looking for more than stunts, vlogs, and pranks — they’re drawn to recurring formats and characters they can return to and invest time in.

This audience demand isn’t being met by the old guard of Hollywood or Madison Avenue — it’s being led by a new wave of creators and studios that know how to craft high-quality formats for these spaces.

For marketers, it’s no longer a matter of if — it’s about how to lean into this change in viewing habits.

A New Creative Class

We’re seeing a new culture emerging online – a wave of creators and producers that aren’t chasing virality with shock thumbnails and biggest-ever challenges. A sophisticated creative class is emerging, one that is building formats designed to deepen loyalty over time:

• Creator Filmmakers like the creative collective at Creator Camp are crafting narrative-driven formats without waiting for networks or streamers to greenlight.
• Creator Studios like Mythical Entertainment and First We Feast are evolving into full-fledged media companies with long-running franchises and loyal fanbases.
• Social Content Studios are financing and producing serialized IP that is native to YouTube, TikTok, and Instagram.

These creators and production companies aren’t just chasing trends or algorithms; they’re building loyalty to a format. Shows like Roomies, The Intern, Recess Therapy, and dozens more offer recurring characters, story arcs, and community feedback. On YouTube, flagship franchises like Hot Ones, Good Mythical Morning, and Challenge Accepted rival – and in many cases, surpass – linear TV in reach and cultural impact.

For perspective, YouTube now commands more viewership on TV screens in the U.S. than Netflix or Disney, with over 60% of watch time going to videos longer than 20 minutes. YouTube increasingly sees its content as Emmy-worthy—and rightfully so. The platform’s new Shows tab, which organizes videos into seasons and episodes, is yet another signal of the shift.

A new breed of studios is leaning in. Creative studios like Further Adventures, Unicorn, Gymnasium, Mad Realities, Made In Network, and Portal A’s own Moonshots are financing and creating original IP that is built exclusively for social distribution.

Some are part management company, part production house. Others blend branded content with original series. Some are media companies built around high-profile talent.

The common thread: they’re not born out of legacy media, ad agencies, or entertainment studios scrambling to retrofit ideas and models for digital. They’re not incubating social projects to eventually sell to TV or film. They are studios that are born on social and are pioneering new models and formats engineered for the social media environment.

In an era of audience fatigue with clickbait and algorithm-hunting, these studios know that real value is not derived from one-off viral hits — it’s about capturing and sustaining audience attention over time by building loyalty around formats viewers love.

The Brand Opportunity

For marketers, this opens a real opportunity to get in early — to move beyond logo slaps and one-off creator deals and co-create formats that drive long-term audience engagement.

As YouTube creator Samir Chaudry recently noted: “Memorable views beat forgettable impressions.”

Today’s opportunity is about becoming part of the show development itself. Some brands are co-producing and shaping entertainment series in a way that forges a deep, lasting connection between a brand and an entertainment property that audiences love.

Take Boy Room, a serialized TikTok-native series sponsored by Amazon Prime. It doesn’t just feature the brand — the series is shaped by it. Amazon supplies the furniture and decor for the room makeover show, making the brand essential to the concept.

If you want to show up in this new genre in the most impactful way, consider these priorities:

• Start at the concept stage: Don’t just fund an idea. Help shape it. The strongest brand partnerships are built on shared creative intent from the very beginning.
• Be part of the narrative: Find ways to naturally integrate your product or message into the story arc. If it doesn’t serve or even improve the story, it won’t feel natural to the viewer.
• Design for social consumption: Social content isn’t just shorter TV — it’s built for platform behaviors and competes against infinite other options. Must-watch intros, platform-native talent, and immediately understandable concepts are table stakes.

The Future of Entertainment Is Already Here

We’re still in the first inning of a seismic change in how audiences consume entertainment.

Netflix isn’t just competing with Disney or HBO for your attention — it’s battling TikTok and YouTube. Social entertainment is no longer a stepping stone to TV or film; it is becoming the destination itself.

As audiences spend less time in traditional spaces and more time on platforms like YouTube, they’re seeking richer, more compelling storytelling online. For marketers, the opportunity is to show up early and partner with the creators and producers who are on the frontlines of this change.

This era won’t be defined by commercial breaks or rented space alongside this new wave of entertainment — it will be about helping co-create it.