Facebook has announced a series of live video feature updates, including monetising live streams which could have a significant impact for DJs and producers.

Facebook has announced that users will now be able to charge for live video streamed events. The news came as a part of a series of updates to the social media platform’s live video streaming service in light of the Covid-19 pandemic. In a post on their blog, the company said: “People are turning to Facebook Live and Instagram Live for workout classes, cooking lessons, faith services and more, so we’re adding features to make them even more useful”.

Facebook To Allow Creators To Monetise Live Streams
‘Purchase Access’ with Facebook. Photo: Facebook

Since the worldwide lockdown, the popularity and use of live streams has increased substantially, as creators and businesses turn to the internet to replace face-to-face interaction. For the music and DJ industry, it is currently the only way to perform for an audience. The announcement addresses this issue and brings the company into line with Twitch, the major video game live streaming platform. Twitch already allows creators to monetise live streams. Facebook’s announcement went on: “To support creators and small businesses, we plan to add the ability for Pages to charge for access to events with Live videos on Facebook – anything from online performances to classes to professional conferences.”

Facebook’s announcement included a number of other updates to their video streaming service. They are reinstating ‘Live With’, which allows streamers to add another person into their live video. Facebook events can now be flagged as online-only and “in the coming weeks” integrated with Facebook Live. Non-profit fundraisers can now add a donate button to their live streams. Facebook are also working on increasing accessibility to video content. They have introduced an audio-only option for users in areas with poor internet connection or limited data. They have also introduced a new gaming app which allows users to live stream games from their phones to Facebook.

The release comes at an interesting crossroads for tech companies who’ve renewed interest in improving the livestreaming ecosystem. Waves has released the Content Creators Audio Toolkit aimed at improving the audio quality for online consumption and Spotify have released Artist Fundraising Pick which allows acts to pin a specific destination on their profile where fan can pay them ‘tips’.

29th April, 2020

Comments

  • That’s a smart move!

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