The livestreaming industry has become a major component in e-Commerce today. Most e-Commerce platforms are turning to shoppertainment to cater to their customers who prefer watching products before making a purchase decision.
But for livestreaming platforms, the demand from the e-Commerce industry is just a part of the opportunity. Today, these platforms have led to a creator economy whereby presenters can go live and promote a product independently. One platform that has been advocating this is BIGO LIVE.
BIGO Technology’s livestreaming platform, Bigo Live is widely considered to be a game-changer in the social media industry.
Unlike other video platforms like TikTok and YouTube, Bigo Live works differently. The platform has amassed over 400 million users across 150 countries worldwide since its inception. Having been ranked 8th in Apptopia’s ’10 Most Downloaded Social Network Apps in US’ in 2021 and retaining its position as one of the top social apps – ranked 5th in the first half of 2021, according to App Annie, Bigo Live remains one of the market leaders in the livestreaming space.
Then, how does BIGO differentiate itself from the other livestreaming platforms that are available in the industry today?
Our mission is to build a trusted and safe social livestreaming platform for everyone of any level, experience, or expertise. We empower our users to find their own voice, and most importantly, showcase their talents and content to a global audience.
In our efforts to provide our users with an engaging and immersive livestreaming experience, we have been progressively exploring and pushing our new innovations. For example, we recently introduced and launched ‘Virtual Live’, a new interactive feature that allows users to create personalized virtual 3D avatars to represent themselves and communicate with others.
The ‘Virtual Live’ feature is developed using a blend of virtual reality (VR) and augmented reality (AR) technology to capture realistic facial expressions and mimic user movements as they livestream in real-time. The innovation of Bigo Live’s interactive features allows us to enhance the social connection between our users, reinvent the livestreaming experience, and offer infinite possibilities for virtual interactions.
Our unique strength also lies in building a deeply localized social ecosystem together with our local broadcasters in every region where we operate. Another key differentiator is that we help local broadcasters connect to the world and elevate them to a global stage. We empower our broadcasters and content creators by lowering the barriers of entry to host livestreaming sessions in order to encourage a flow of high-quality content.
The creator economy is booming through livestreaming. How does BIGO enable users to make the most out of this?
Bigo Live, as a creator-first platform, has creator incentive policies and programs to encourage and reward creators and broadcasters who produce great content and added value to our virtual community.
As we enter a new era of social media with the rise of livestreaming, we noticed a shift towards authentic experiences as users are starting to move towards a model of paying for content creators instead of professionally produced content.
This elevates Bigo Live into a catalyst for an organic development of a creator economy-centric ecosystem that is built on a real sense of connection where users can be invested in the platform’s leading broadcasters and vice versa. This is also part of Bigo Live’s ongoing efforts to foster a sense of giving back to creators and setting the bar for the creator economy.
In this aspect, we believe that the livestreaming industry will continue to be a place for talented individuals and content creators to grow and achieve self-actualization, and we remain committed to driving growth in the creator economy for years to come.
There have been some concerns about the content that goes on livestreaming platforms. How does BIGO ensure the content on its platform is safe and does not raise privacy concerns?
Bigo Live has a zero-tolerance policy against any illegal or inappropriate activity on the platform. We are fully committed to providing an inclusive platform for our users from all around the world, where they can practice their freedom of speech and showcase their talents freely.
To continue upholding our content guidelines, we will continue to rely on AI-based technological solutions. Bigo Live has its own proprietary AI online content management system (CMS) that enables automatic review and management of user-generated content. This technology allows the platform to filter inappropriate and illegal content so that we can intervene and take the necessary actions as soon as possible.
Bigo Live also has a team of moderators who work around the clock, bolstering our AI technology. We are usually able to capture negative and illicit content within minutes and will administer a ban to the user based on the severity of the penalty.
Besides our automated AI-enabled CMS, we also have our local content management teams, in 15 regions globally with a 99% success rate in keeping illegal content off our platform. Apart from responding to our users’ reports, they also scour through the platform to remove inappropriate content that goes against our content and community guidelines.
Most importantly, we abide by local regulatory rules to ensure compliance with local laws and legal systems to ensure that there are no illegal activities on the platform. We work with local governments and law enforcement agencies to ensure a safe and trusted environment for our users.
