Your own streaming service
Film distribution platform.
Self-distribution, aggregators and festivals, compared fairly.
A film distribution platform is any service that gets a finished film in front of paying viewers. Three kinds dominate for independents: festivals, which build a film's name; aggregators, which deliver it to large stores and channels; and self-distribution platforms, where you sell directly. Each is the right answer for some films and the wrong one for others.
Video hosting for filmmakers · 5 GB free · Paid plans from USD 9/month
By uncompressed.io · Updated October 2026
Short answer
Which film distribution platform should an independent filmmaker use?
Usually more than one, in order. Festivals build the film's name, an aggregator reaches viewers on large stores and channels for a share of revenue, and a self-distribution platform sells directly to your own audience. uncompressed.io is a self-distribution platform with 0% commission; it does not place films on other services.
- Festivals: reputation and buyer contacts
- Aggregators: reach on large stores, for a share
- Self-distribution: every sale and every buyer's email
- Filmhub pays filmmakers 80% of what it receives
- uncompressed.io self-distribution: 0% commission
- Most films combine routes, in sequence
The three routes
Festivals, aggregators, self-distribution
judged on the same questions
Filmhub figures from its own help centre, read 12 October 2026: filmmakers receive 80% of what Filmhub receives; exclusive deals are negotiated case by case. The streaming platform is included with every paid plan for members who switch it on before 31 December 2026, and stays included for them afterwards; after that date new activations add USD 39 a month.
Fair to each
What each route is really for
and when each one wins
Festivals win when
The film is a calling card, a first or second feature, or a documentary that needs reviews and press to be taken seriously. Selection opens doors no platform can.
Aggregators win when
You have no audience of your own, the film has broad appeal, and you want it on large stores without negotiating with each. You trade a share and some control for reach.
Self-distribution wins when
You have a mailing list, a niche, a community or a following, and you want to set the price, keep the money and email the same buyers for the next film.
Read every contract for exclusivity
Decide
Which to start with
by your situation
uncompressed.io for creators, in one table
Read from the live price list. Verified 2026-10.
| Commission on sales | 0 percent, at any volume. Buyers pay into your own payment account; your card processor's fee applies. |
|---|---|
| What you can sell | Purchases (stream forever), downloads, rentals with a viewing window, memberships with monthly or yearly tiers, bundles and series. |
| Member tools | Free trials per tier, coupon codes, gift memberships, refunds and free access from your earnings page. |
| Your storefront | A shop under your name at yourname.uncompressed.io/on-demand, or on your own domain. Buyers need no account. |
| Picture quality | Films stream as you exported them: no re-encode of video or audio, with an optional lighter copy for slow connections. |
| Viewing hours included | Lite 1,000, Pro 5,000, Max 15,000, Studio 25,000 hours a month, then USD 29 per extra 20,000-hour block. Playback never pauses. |
| Plans | Starter free (5 GB, one film at a time); Lite USD 9, Pro USD 39, Max USD 99, Studio USD 219 a month; yearly is one month free. |
| Leak Shield (optional) | Every buyer gets their own invisibly marked copy; the open web and torrent indexes are searched; a confirmed leak names and blocks the buyer and sends the takedown. USD 99 a month or USD 1,188 a year, any paid plan. |
| Inclusion window | The streaming platform is included with every paid plan for members who switch it on before 31 December 2026, and stays included for them afterwards; after that date new activations add USD 39 a month. |
Plans and add-ons: pricing. The whole cluster starts at the creator platform guide.
Self-distribution
What the self-distribution route involves
on uncompressed.io
Upload the master
The file streams as exported, without a re-encode, so the paid version is the one you delivered.
Set prices
Purchase, rental with a viewing window, download, and membership tiers if you have several films.
Set country rules
Turn off any territory a distributor or aggregator holds exclusively.
Share the shop
yourname.uncompressed.io/on-demand or your own domain, with a free preview cut.
Other self-distribution and OTT tools exist, and some are better for particular jobs: Uscreen lists native live streaming on its plans, and Vimeo OTT lists apps for more TV platforms on its Enterprise tier, according to their own pricing pages read 12 October 2026. uncompressed.io is narrower: no live streaming, no marketplace, but 0% commission, the money paid straight into your own account, and the film streamed as exported. For selling a single title step by step, see sell your film online.
Questions
Frequently asked
What is a film distribution platform?
A service that delivers a finished film to paying viewers. For independent filmmakers it usually means one of three things: a festival circuit, an aggregator that places the film on stores and streaming channels, or a self-distribution platform where the filmmaker sells directly.
What is the best film distribution platform for independent filmmakers?
There is no single best. Festivals are best for a first film building a name. Aggregators are best for reach when you have no audience of your own. Self-distribution is best when you have an audience and want to keep the revenue and the buyers' emails. Most films use more than one, in that order.
How much do film aggregators take?
It varies. Filmhub's help centre, read 12 October 2026, says filmmakers receive 80% of what Filmhub receives from the channels showing the title. Note that the channel keeps its own share before paying the aggregator.
Is self-distribution better than an aggregator?
It pays more per viewer and you keep the customer list, but you find every viewer yourself. An aggregator reaches viewers you cannot. They are not exclusive of each other unless a contract says so.
Can festivals be a distribution platform?
They are a launch route rather than an income source for most films. A strong festival run attracts distributors, press and audiences, which then make the other two routes work better.
Does uncompressed.io distribute my film to Netflix or other services?
No. uncompressed.io is a self-distribution platform: your own streaming shop with purchases, rentals and memberships at 0% commission. It does not place films on other services and has no marketplace that brings you buyers.
Self-distribute with 0% commission.
Start free with 5 GB. Purchases, rentals, memberships and a shop under your own name come with every paid plan (Lite USD 9, Pro USD 39, Max USD 99, Studio USD 219 a month).
Sources
- 1.Filmhub revenue share, Filmhub help centre (read 12 October 2026)
- 2.Filmhub distribution deal types, Filmhub help centre (read 12 October 2026)
- 3.Vimeo OTT pricing (read 12 October 2026)
- 4.Uscreen pricing (read 12 October 2026)