We’re incredibly pleased to announce that after a lot of hard work, Flattr 2.0 launches publicly today.

The product we’re releasing today was what we imagined, and hoped, Flattr would be when the original idea was born some years ago: an automatic, effortless way for creators to make money from their online content, and for fans to give back to the creators they love: something that we truly believe has the potential to change the way the internet works, by making it more open and profitable for all.

With the new browser extension, privacy-friendly algorithm, and subscription-based flattring — it’s never been easier to support content, and get your content supported.

If you’ve used Flattr before and are already familiar to how it works, then this post will take you through the changes this launch brings, but if you’re new to Flattr then keep on reading…

So, what the F is Flattr?

We believe in a better internet, and we believe in supporting the people who make the internet great. We think direct contributions are the way forward, with the Swedish idea of “many small streams form a large river” guiding our philosophy.

For creators, Flattr is a hassle-free way to earn money for what you create. The effortless nature of Flattr allows you to spend more time creating and less time worrying about tiers or making extra stuff for higher level supporters. With Flattr, your audience rewards you every time they visit your site. Find out more about getting started as a creator on Flattr here.

For contributors, Flattr is an easy way to support bloggers, vloggers, artists, photographers, craftspeople, tutors, or any online creator, that you love. Your contribution is automatically shared between the things you pay attention to – you don’t need to worry about individual subscriptions to each site or creator. Find out more about becoming a contributor here.

How does Flattr work?

Flattr is designed to be hands-off and effortless.

Creators:

Simply link your content to Flattr, be it on a website or social account. This allows your work to be flattred.

Spread the word to fans – they have to have Flattr installed to contribute. The more people who have Flattr installed, the better results you’ll see!

That’s it – no pressure, no tiers, no timetables.

Contributors:

Install the desktop extension and set your subscription. This subscription renews every 30 days.

Use the internet as you normally would.

Flattr’s privacy-friendly algorithm measures your attention on sites in various ways and generates flattrs for the content you’ve been enjoying.

At the end of the 30-day cycle, the amount is automatically distributed to the creators that received flattrs.

So go on, try it out and be part of the mission towards a sustainable funded free and open internet! It’s easy to get started, and we’re here to answer any questions you have.

Get started here.

Happy flattring!