creators are getting another way to monetize the platform: subscriptions. A very small number of influencers in the US have access to the feature for the time being like Instagram .
At first, they will be able to put some live streams and stories behind a paywall. These stories, which can be saved to subscriber-only highlights, have a purple ring to highlight them, Instagram boss Adam Mosseri said.
As with YouTube, subscribers will receive a purple badge next to their username. Content creators can see the badge in comments, messages, and elsewhere. That way, they can devote more attention to subscribers if they want to.
More subscription features may be added in the future. Mosseri also said his team is working on ways for creators to export their subscriber lists and “bring them from Instagram to other apps and websites created by other companies.”
Creators will be able to set a monthly price of their choice and followers can subscribe via a button on their profile. Instagram plans to expand testing to more creators in the coming months and parent company Meta won’t cut creators’ earnings until at least 2023.
“This will help creators earn more by offering benefits to their most engaged followers, such as access to exclusive Lives and Stories,” Mark Zuckerberg, CEO of Instagram’s parent company Meta. “I’m excited to continue creating tools for creators to make a living doing creative work and getting these tools into the hands of more creators soon.”
Facebook added subscriptions in 2019. It seemed inevitable that, given the popularity of the platform and the sheer number of influencers, the option would also come to Instagram. Mosseri’s previous creators would be one of Instagram’s main areas of focus this year, and subscriptions certainly contribute to that. He follows Instagram to achieve certain live streaming goals and other monetization features.
Last summer, Zuckerberg will invest $1 billion in creators by the end of 2022. With so many influencers finding large audiences on other platforms (many of whom are investing heavily in creators), the company is trying to lure them to Facebook and Instagram with the promise of payments.
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