Chinese Livestreamers Go Outdoors For Late-night Tips

In the dead of night on a bridge in southern mainland, around two dozen livestreamers sat crooning and chatting into microphones, their identical ring lights spaced a few metres apart in glowing rows.

The broadcasters gather in spots like this in the city of Guilin most nights with the hopes of catching the attention of online "passers-by" scrolling through livestreams on Douyin, the nation’s version of TikTok, where viewers can donate to their favourite streamers.

"There are too many indoor livestreamers," said 27-year-old Qiao Ya, who works from 9:00pm to 3:00am every night.

"For indoor livestreaming you need to look pretty to be able to attract viewers, but I'm too average for that."

Outdoor broadcasting took off about a year ago, but conditions can be harsh, with the temperature sometimes dropping to almost zero degrees Celsius. Streamers bundle themselves in thick blankets and some bring small heaters.

"Viewers might feel if we're outdoors or just by ourselves late at night that it's very tough, so they might be nicer to us," said Qiao, whose only income comes from donations through her stream.

Livestreaming on apps like Douyin, which said it had 600 million users in 2020, is a popular way to make money on the mainland.

Some – like "Lipstick King" Li Jiaqi – have become celebrities, making millions of dollars US in endorsements and advertising fees through the platform.

But for those on the bridge, the earnings are much slimmer. On a good day, Qiao makes up to 600 yuan over eight hours of streaming. On a bad day, her takings can be as low as 10 yuan.

Like most Douyin performers, Qiao is signed with a livestreamer talent agency, which takes a 10 percent cut of her revenue in exchange for equipment rental and management of her social media presence.

Douyin takes another 50 percent, leaving streamers like Qiao with just 40 percent of what they make. The firm's parent company ByteDance, which also owns TikTok, reported US$18.3 billion in revenue in the first quarter of 2022.

Despite all this, big donations keep livestreamers like Qiao coming back.

"One guy scrolled past my roadside livestream one night at 2:20am and felt very touched," Qiao said. The anonymous man gave her a 3,000 yuan donation.

"I was so happy that I went home early that night," she said. (AFP)