The COVID-19 pandemic forever changed the way we consume entertainment and reach followers and audiences. As more and more people around the world were confined to their homes, consumers quickly gravitated towards visual forms of entertainment such as live video streaming. This sudden shift to live-streaming and social platforms enabled performers, gamers, retailers and influencers to easily connect with their fans around the globe in real-time.
We surveyed 200 live-streamers from around the world in an attempt to better understand how the pandemic has impacted this growing industry, including with regards to their earnings, what benefits live-streaming offers them and what they believe the future holds for this prosperous landscape post-pandemic.
Here we’ll cover a few key takeaways from the report.
With social distancing measures implemented as a result of the pandemic, digital habits quickly changed and live-streaming platforms saw a sharp rise in users. In the U.S., social live-streaming platforms like TikTok experienced a stunning 18% week-over-week increase in downloads. In addition, Payoneer data showed that Bigo Live, a popular social streaming platform, saw a higher growth rate in monthly active users during April and May 2020, compared to earlier in Q1.
Furthermore, live-streaming shopping boomed in China where local eCommerce giants were given the opportunity to boost sales by partnering with live-streaming platforms, allowing consumers to purchase products during a broadcast. Gamers and musicians also flocked to these platforms by hosting celebrity tournaments, virtual festivals and releasing new music. In fact, video-streaming platform Twitch saw a 524% increase in their Music and Performing Arts category.
We asked global live-streamers to share how long they’ve been live-streaming for and how the pandemic has impacted their earnings. 51% reported that they’ve been earning for less than a year, suggesting that COVID-19 arrived at a time when live-streaming had already started to skyrocket.
As for those who earn income from these platforms, 38% expected their earnings would increase during the crisis, while 25% expect they would earn about the same. This proposes that with lockdowns in place, many viewers crave entertainment more than ever in order to help take their minds off things.
Looking forward, we asked survey respondents if they expect their earnings to change post-pandemic as well as what opportunities and challenges will arise in the future. 62% reported that they expect their live-streaming earnings to grow once the crisis is under control, while only 11% believe that their earnings will decrease, suggesting the future of live broadcasts remains optimistic. Many survey respondents mentioned that live-streaming has enabled them to easily and safely earn supplemental income while at home during the outbreak. Not only did they mention that they could pay their bills with this income, but many truly enjoyed connecting with their audiences and establishing new friendships in real-time.
There’s no doubt that our digital habits have completely transformed as a result of COVID-19, ultimately allowing many businesses and individuals to create digital content in ways they would have never considered before.
Our survey shows that demand for live-streaming has certainly increased in 2020 more than anticipated. Even before the pandemic, live-streaming was already emerging as a more creative way for people to connect with their fans. Today, we’re seeing more and more people gravitate towards live video content and as businesses will have no choice but to embrace this trend and stay ahead of the game.
Download our report today to learn more about the live-streaming industry in 2020!