TikTok unveiled plans for a $ 200 million “creator fund” to add content from emerging social media personalities to the fast-growing video-sharing app.
The new American fund “will help support ambitious creators looking for opportunities to foster a livelihood through its innovative content,” said Vanessa Pappas, general manager of TikTok US.
The move comes with TikTok seeing strong momentum, especially among young smartphone users, even as lawmakers and US officials intensify warnings about their ties to China.
Pappas said with the fund, “Our creators will be able to earn additional profits that help reward the care and dedication they put in creatively connecting with an audience inspired by their ideas.”
The fund will be open in August to US applicants 18 years of age and older who have a platform that follows it, and will post original content according to their community guidelines.
The move could help boost interest in TikTok, which has seen its user base grow to an estimated 1 billion.
Until now, TikTok has been using Facebook’s proprietary Instagram model, which allows creators to post sponsored videos without direct remuneration from the platform.
TikTok said this week that it plans to add some 10,000 jobs in the US in the next three years, while fighting complaints about its ties to China.
A unit of China-based ByteDance holding company TikTok has been banned in India, and US officials have said they are looking at possible actions against the app.
A bill passed by the United States House of Representatives would ban federal employees from using the app on government-issued devices, out of concern that it could be used for spying.
Amid reports of a possible spin-off or purchase of the app, TikTok has said the company’s structure is under review.
