Facebook’s (META -1.16%) Instagram is making it easier for creators to make money on the platform, announcing its introducing ads in IGTV, its long-form video destination, and Badges viewers can purchase on Instagram Live.
It’s the first time Instagram has moved to share revenue with its contributors, saying in a blog post given the uncertain circumstances brought on by the COVID-19 pandemic it’s committed to helping creators turn their passions into income.
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The ads on IGTV will begin rolling out next week and will first appear when users watch IGTV videos from the previews that show up in their feeds. The video ads will be designed for a mobile audience and will be a maximum of 15 seconds long. The tech stock is testing IGTV ads with a handful of U.S. based creators and advertisers and plans to expand that slowly in the coming months. Justin Osofsky, COO at Instagram told The Verge creators will get 55% of the ad revenue.
Creators can also make money off of Badges on Instagram Live, its real-time video streaming service within the social media platform. From February to March Live saw a 70% increase in views. Viewers will be able to purchase Badges during a live video. In return, their comments stand out during the live event and land them on a list of the creator’s badge holders. Instagram will begin testing the new feature in June with a small group of creators and businesses. During the next few months, it plans to expand that throughout a number of countries including the U.S., Brazil, U.K., Germany, France, and Mexico. Osofsky told The Verge Instagram will roll out the badges in three price points $0.99, $1.99, and $4.99. Instagram isn’t taking a cut of the revenue during the trial but it plans to introduce a revenue-sharing model once the service is fully launched.
Instagram said it's also expanding Live Shopping to more creators over the coming months.
