Instagram to allow creators to earn money through Reels

Instagram recently announced that it would be allowing users the opportunity to earn money through the short video 'Reels' they share on the platform. The caption of a post, titled 'Update to Reels', reminds readers that back in July, Instagram had announced a plan to invest over $1 billion in paying creators for content.

By the end of 2022, Facebook plans to invest over $1 billion in programs that give creators new ways to earn money for the content they create on Facebook and Instagram. Creators will earn money based on the number of views their Reels garner.

This investment will include new bonus programs that pay eligible creators for hitting certain milestones when they use the platform's creative and monetisation tools. These programs will be seasonal, evolving and expanding over time.

"We started testing the Reels Summer bonus, where creators earn money based on the performance of their Reels. Your response was great so we’re ready to roll out a second bonus, Reels Play. This one is now available on both Facebook and Instagram. It will be invite-only in the US, and will potentially expand globally in 2022," reads the caption.

According to a Facebook blog post, there are now three ways in which creators can monetise their content. They can earn money by inserting ads into videos and live streams, with in-stream ads and in-stream ads for Live. The second way is to turn fans into paid supporters with Stars, paid online events and fan subscriptions. With Star bonuses, participating video and gaming creators will receive a monthly bonus for hitting specific Stars milestones over the next three months.

The third method is the conventional way of leveraging branded collaborations to build up a creator's business with paid partnerships. It's interesting to note that Twitter also recently announced a feature, called 'Tips'. It allows users to support the tweets of accounts that they like - monetarily.