Actors on online freelance marketplace Fiverr aren’t exactly household names, but one man has become a bit of a celebrity on YouTube for his spokesperson-like abilities. VoiceoverPete, otherwise known as Presenter Pete Ace, is one of Fiverr’s most popular users, but a recent ban for suspicious behavior has resulted in YouTube’s meme community coming out to support him.
YouTube’s favorite Fiverr actor is banned from the service
Leaving behind more than 250 unanswered requests
Leaving behind more than 250 unanswered requests
Grandayy, one of YouTube’s most prolific meme creators, was the first to raise awareness regarding Pete’s ban. Grandayy tweeted about receiving a refund after trying to hire Pete for another video, including a screenshot of a message sent to him stating that “voiceoverpete” was no longer available on the marketplace.
An email sent to Pete from Fiverr’s Trust and Safety team, seen in the video below, states that his account was removed due to numerous “credit card scam” videos he starred in. The videos are supposed to be satirical. A collection of samples can be seen below.
A Fiverr representative told The Verge that although the company doesn’t comment on specific cases, they did provide a statement regarding Pete. “Any attempt to defraud or scam others is in clear violation of our terms of service and strictly prohibited,” the representative said. “We have and will always act without delay against this type of behavior in order to keep our marketplace safe for our community.”
Pete responded with his own video that addressed concerns Fiverr’s Trust and Safety team brought to him. “It’s a fake scam,” Pete says in the video below. “That’s what’s funny about it. Clearly, people in legal have no sense of humor.”
Pete’s video also includes a conversation with a Fiverr employee. He addresses a recent convention in Miami for Fiverr where employees reportedly spoke about how happy they were with his status as a popular meme within the YouTube community. He added that he had received more than 250 orders for $50 a clip — totaling more than $12,000 in revenue. Those orders were refunded to customers.
“This was the kick in the pants that I needed to do everything on my own and not have the handcuffs on from Fiverr,” Pete says in the video above.
The Verge has reached out to Pete for comment and will update if more information becomes available. For now, he’s currently working on his own YouTube channel and continuing to work with people within the YouTube community to provide voiceover work.
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