Tumblr Launches New Livestreaming Feature

By Ryan O'Rourke

Social Media Platform

Tumblr is entering the livestreaming market with a new feature dubbed Tumblr Live. The new feature comes via the video streaming service Live Box and will give Tumblr a native streaming presence to compete with the likes of Twitter and Facebook. Users in the U.S. on Android and iOS are able to access Tumblr Live now with a desktop and global rollout coming soon.

Previously, Tumblr had no native means of allowing viewers to livestream, only allowing them to link to other existing platforms like YouTube. Tumblr Live will instead keep its creators on-site, allowing them to go live directly from the app and eventually the website. The user interface looks very similar to the typical livestreamer with a trending page for popular creators and the ability to save your favorite creators on the site. Monetization for creating content on the site exists in the form of Diamonds which users can donate to streamers to support their work. Live Box will handle most of the moderation through both AI and manual review for any content that violates site policy, though individual creators can also appoint their own moderators.

Currently, the ability to livestream is only available through a user's primary account and not any side blogs.

Teaming with Live Box indicates a seriousness from Tumblr in growing a creator economy. The blogging site has largely been a haven for artists and other creatives, opening another avenue for them to grow on the platform and make a little money. "We’re curious to see how Tumblr’s overflowing creativity will blossom now that users have access to native livestreaming," Matt Mullenweg, founder and CEO of Tumblr parent company Automattic, said in a statement. "Our creators are multi-modal and this is a new color in their palette." Automattic bought the site from Verizon back in 2019 as a sort of companion to WordPress, but the addition of livestreaming gives Tumblr a new dimension.

Tumblr Senses an Opportunity to Regain Ground On Its Competitors

It's no surprise that Tumblr is adding livestreaming capabilities now considering what's happening in the wider social media landscape. Twitter has largely descended into chaos under its new CEO Elon Musk following a string of wildly unpopular announcements. Musk has looked to monetize the blue verified checkmark, reinstate controversial figures on the platform, suspend and ban users under questionable circumstances, and briefly enact policy changes that have kneecapped users' abilities to promote their businesses and other platforms, among other things, leading many users to consider a move to another site. Tumblr could be one such beneficiary of the chaos and adding livestreaming further diversifies their offering. https://www.msn.com/en-us/ news/technology/tumblrlaunches-new-livestreamingfeature/ar-AA15utqy

Expectations for Tumblr Live aren't to beat out Twitch or other established livestreamers, but it's another tool in the site's kit as Automattic tries to right the ship. The full list of details on Tumblr Live can be viewed in a blog post from the site. More information will come out on a global rollout soon.