Odysee is an American decentralized video hosting platform, built on the LBRY blockchain.[1][2][3] It positions itself as an alternative to mainstream services like YouTube, but with a focus on freedom of speech and decentralization.[4]
The platform enables users to upload, share, and monetize videos through cryptocurrency, while maintaining content persistence through a peer-to-peer network.[5][6][7]
Odysee was founded in 2020 by Julian Chandra.[7][8]
In June 2024, Odysee was acquired by Forward Research. The acquisition took place after Odysee's former parent company LBRY lost a lawsuit from the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission in July 2023.[9][10]
Odysee is driven by blockchain, a decentralized protocol that allows digital content to be distributed and stored without a central authority. This blockchain network supports a peer-to-peer infrastructure, which allows users to upload and share videos. The metadata of uploaded content is stored on the blockchain, while the videos themselves are hosted across a distributed network of users, referred to as nodes.[11]
Arweave is a decentralized data storage network that uses blockchain technology to enable digital storage. Its native AR token pays for storage and incentivizes participants.[12] The Arweave network has been used to archive content in censorship-sensitive regions like Hong Kong and during conflicts such as the Russian invasion of Ukraine.[13][14]
Odysee's content moderation is significantly less restrictive compared to mainstream platforms like YouTube.[15] Since its launch in September 2020, Odysee's specific moderation policies and decentralized structure have allowed hate speech and misinformation to be spread on the platform.[16] This has included far-right groups, conspiracy theorists, and individuals deplatformed or banned elsewhere.[7][17] Its moderation policy and philosophy has an explicitly broad interpretation of freedom of speech.[17]
In addition to facilitating hate speech, Odysee has also hosted disinformation, particularly around topics such as COVID-19, vaccines, and political conspiracy theories. The platform's decentralized nature makes it difficult for content to be effectively moderated or removed, allowing disinformation to spread without significant resistance.[7]
Because it also hosts non-video filetypes, Odysee has become the home for many 3D-printed firearm files. The platform's lax moderation allows the sharing and distribution of some potentially restricted items, like high-capacity magazines and auto sears.[18]
Odysee has faced geo-blocking restrictions in regions such as the European Union, where governments have raised concerns about content deemed harmful or disinforming.[19]
