Demand Studios Publishes Millionth Piece of Content; Bolsters Offerings for its Nationwide Network of Professional Freelance Creators

SAN FRANCISCO & SANTA MONICA, Calif.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Demand Media, a leading social media company that’s currently the 15^th most-visited property in the U.S. according to comScore, today announced that its publishing platform and community, Demand Studios, has created more than one million original pieces of content (articles and videos), making it one of the largest producers of content on the Web today. The content is distributed to an audience of more than 80 million via Demand Media’s network of distinctive vertical properties which include LIVESTRONG.COM, eHow.com, Trails.com, Golflink.com and others. Moreover, Demand Studios creates content for major Internet destinations like YouTube, and traditional publishers such as the Atlanta Journal-Constitution.

“Decades of editorial experience and creative talent are now migrating online due to the shifting climate of traditional media, and Demand Studios is poised to serve as a gathering place for this talent”

Large Freelance Community Sees Increased Benefits of Scale

More than 6,000 active Demand Studios freelance creators, from filmmakers to writers and title proofers to copy editors, collaborate to produce quality content. In an effort to reward and retain its existing talented community and attract additional professional freelancers, beginning November 1^st, 2009, Demand Studios will leverage that scale and offer health care options to active, tenured writers, filmmakers and copy editors who meet eligibility requirements. The company has plans to expand the health care options to the other roles available within Demand Studios.

Demand Studios is focused on expanding access points for its freelance community by providing:

Guaranteed access to health care options for eligible members through a volume discount on behalf of Demand Studios’ large creator network. The Demand Studios plans average half the costs of what a freelancer would be able to get as an individual seeking health coverage
Access to almost limitless amounts of work (tens of thousands of assignments every day)
Guaranteed twice-weekly payments
Access to unparalleled audience distribution (#15 on comScore, #2 most-viewed channel on YouTube)
Access to training and mentoring offered by Demand Studios and its professional freelancer community
Access to a large community of like-minded professional freelance content creators with whom they can learn, grow and network

“Decades of editorial experience and creative talent are now migrating online due to the shifting climate of traditional media, and Demand Studios is poised to serve as a gathering place for this talent,” said Steven Kydd, executive vice president, Demand Studios. “Freelancers are telling us two things loud and clear in our community. They want a sense of stability that comes with guaranteed work and they want to grow their careers. As a result, we are responding with solutions around health care and how they will be paid. By offering guaranteed access to health care benefits as well as twice weekly payment, we are lightening the burden and removing more of the risk for those who want to follow their passion.”

Generating Traction for a New Model

Demand Studios was first created to grow Demand Media’s owned and operated websites. This content creation process which combines traditional editorial processes with Demand Media’s proprietary technologies results in articles now finding a home in the pages of respected, traditional publications.

For example, just in the past week an article by Demand Studios’ writer G.K. Bayne showed up as a resource in a New York Times article and newspaper giant Gannett distributed Demand Studios writer Jennifer Olvera’s “How to green your Halloween” and other stories from Demand Studios writers to local papers in their network.

This focus on editorial standards is also attracting quality professionals. Bob Land, an editor, indexer, proofreader with more than 30 years of publishing experience, was accepted into Demand Studios at the beginning of 2009. He sees real value in this new model for content professionals like him. “I’ve seen editorial jobs slashed not only throughout the publishing industry, but even in seemingly unrelated fields like the law. Friends with decades of unparalleled journalism experience have been bought out of their longtime professions as cost-cutting measures. In these times, any organization that provides steady work and reliable payment, not to mention the flexibility to set one’s own schedule and allow for other freelance pursuits, is a source of great comfort. Demand Studios also gives traditional red-pencil editors the opportunity to make the jump to a new publishing paradigm.”

For more information about Demand Studios, please contact press@demandmedia.com to schedule a briefing during this week’s Web 2.0 Summit.

About Demand Studios

Demand Studios^® produces valuable, high-quality content for leading digital brands by providing a range of consistently available work to talented freelancers. Employing writers, filmmakers, copy editors, experts and many other roles, Demand Studios is one of the largest producers of content on the Web today. The company is also largest provider of video content to YouTube, and its articles and videos are seen on popular websites such as LIVESTRONG.COM, eHow^TM, GolfLink^®, Trails.com^® and many more. For additional information, please visit: www.demandstudios.com

About Demand Media

As the leader in distributed social media, Demand Media^TM makes possible more than 3 billion conversations every month. The Demand Media platform harnesses the creativity of individuals to deliver valuable content and help websites grow by providing content and community features that consumers truly want. The privately held company was founded in May 2006 and is based in Santa Monica, CA, with offices in Bellevue, WA, Austin, TX, New York, NY and London, UK. For more information about Demand Media, Inc., please visit: www.demandmedia.com