Similar money-making tools have been added to rivals such as
Instagram and Facebook as the social media platforms compete for online
personalities that attract audiences.
"LIVE Subscription is an extension of our efforts to
build diversified creator monetization opportunities that suit a range of
creator needs," TikTok said in a blog post.
TikTok said the subscription feature being introduced this
week will only be available to creators by invitation for now but will be
expanded globally in coming months. The company did not disclose pricing.
Creators will be able to switch into a chat mode exclusive
to subscribers, "enhancing an even more personal connection between
creator and viewer," the company said.
To access the LIVE Subscription feature, creators will need
to be at least 18 years old, while users will have to be at least the same age
to subscribe, TikTok said in the post.
Subscriber perks will include digital badges and, in some
cases, the ability to control camera angles during streamed sessions, according
to video clips posts by TikTok creators invited to take part.
TikTok early this month announced an ad revenue-sharing
programme with the social media platform's most prominent creators, moving
closer to a model already used by its competitors.
The short-video format app has become wildly popular in
recent years with more than a billion active users globally, but has been
criticized for not providing a way for creators to effectively monetise
content.
Under a TikTok Pulse programme to be rolled out in the
United States next month, companies can place their ads next to user content in
specific categories and creators will get a cut.
"We will begin exploring our first advertising revenue
share program with creators, public figures and media publishers," the
company, a subsidiary of Chinese tech firm ByteDance, said in a statement.
Other major social networks that focus on video, such as
YouTube, Instagram, and Snapchat, have already implemented revenue-sharing
systems.