YouTube is launching a new way for creators to earn money during vertical livestreams, the company announced on Thursday. Viewers can now buy “Jewels,” a digital currency, to send “gifts” to creators. Gifts are animations that appear on screen during vertical livestreams.
If this sounds familiar, it’s because it’s similar to TikTok’s live gifting feature that lets viewers purchase “coins” to send gifts, of various monetary value, to support live creators during their streams.