TikTok Launches Live Subscription Beta
pcmag.comTikTok announced a new program that lets viewers pay a monthly fee to watch specific live streams.
Available first on an invite-only basis, Live Subscription gives creators another chance to monetize their content by offering fan perks like membership badges that get upgraded over time, custom-designed emotes, and exclusive chat.
The new feature launches in beta on May 26, according to an announcement(Opens in a new window) posted on the TikTok Live Creator page, where a handful of creators can be seen announcing(Opens in a new window) their participation in (and followers' benefits of) the program. Live Subscription will become available globally "over the coming months," a TikTok blog post said(Opens in a new window).
ByteDance-owned TikTok currently supports tips, which lets fans send money to creators 18 years or older with at least 100,000 followers and good standing on the platform. Viewers can also gift creators virtual currency during livestreams.
News of a subscription service, meanwhile, surfaced in January, when The Information tipped a new monetization scheme similar to what Facebook and Instagram offer. As reported by TechCrunch(Opens in a new window), TikTok's pricing and revenue share is "comparable" to Twitch, which offers subscriptions starting at $4.99 per month and takes a 30% to 50% cut of subscription revenue.
It was only last week that TikTok began releasing tools that give folks more recognition for their digital work through the ability to directly tag, mention, and credit a video in their description. The company will also prompt users to add acknowledgement throughout the posting process, and introduce educational pop-ups that explain the importance of crediting.
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