The TikTok ban may have lasted only a few hours (at least for now), but Meta is still trying to capitalize on its rival’s tenuous future. Meta has rolled out a new “breakthrough bonus program” that offers up to $5,000 to creators who are new to the company’s apps.
According to Meta, the bonus program is open to US adults who “have an existing presence on a third party social app that you can link or already have linked during the application process.” Participants will also be required to create a professional account on Instagram and a page on Facebook.
If accepted, creators will then be able to earn up to $5,000 over a 90-day period in exchange for sharing “at least 20 reels on Facebook and 10 reels on Instagram posted natively within each app within each 30-day bonus period” and sharing “on at least 10 separate days within each 30-day bonus period.” (Meta notes that creators individual payments will be calculated based on “an evaluation of your social presence.”) Creators will also be able to participate in its “Facebook Content Monetization” program that allows creators to earn money for text and photos posts in addition to video content.
Though Meta doesn’t name TikTok specifically, the timing of the rollout seems pretty clearly meant to target TikTok creators who aren’t active on Facebook and Instagram. It’s also notable that the terms of the bonus program require creators to post twice as many Reels on Facebook as Instagram, suggesting Meta is looking to boost original content on Facebook specifically.
The breakthrough bonuses are just one of the ways Meta is attempting to lure TikTok creators to its platforms. The company is also offering some creators, including those in the “breakthrough” program, a free one-year trial subscription to Meta Verified, which provides a blue check and extra perks like impersonation protection. The company also recently extended the length of Reels on Instagram, from 90 seconds to up to three minutes, and redesigned the Instagram grid.
Meta is also reportedly striking bigger deals with specific, higher-profile creators. The Information recently reported that Meta has been offering some TikTok stars bonuses of up to $50,000 a month in exchange for posting their content on Reels first. A Meta spokesperson declined to comment on the specifics of those arrangements, but said the company “recently expanded our investment” in content deals “to support more creators.”
