YouTube is taking a page out of the TikTok playbook by adding “jewels” you buy to exchange for gifts for your favorite creators during livestreams. The feature, announced in September’s Made on YouTube event, is rolling out in the US over the next few weeks for eligible creators in the YouTube Partner Program.
The feature is reminiscent of TikTok’s livestream gifting, which essentially works the same way, except you buy “coins.” On YouTube, gifts you send to live streamers appear onscreen and add to their earnings called “rubies,” valued at one cent each. YouTube says there’s no fixed revenue share since the cost of jewels can change based on promotions, so the amount of rubies earned can vary. For the next three months, YouTube will give a bonus of 50 percent on earnings to eligible creators of up to an additional $1,000 per month.
Creators can only receive gifts on vertical livestreams directly on YouTube or through third-party streaming software, and viewers can only gift items while using the YouTube mobile app. Once a creator enables gifts for their account, they can no longer receive YouTube’s Super Stickers from fans.
YouTube may have noticed the success of TikTok’s gifting feature, which can be addictive for viewers. For instance, one lady spent her inheritance gifting streamers; another stole $300,000 from her church and spent it on digital coins. YouTube is also testing something like TikTok’s endless video feed with a new swipe gesture on long-form videos.
