The social media platform Facebook has announced changes to its Facebook Live service, which it currently utilizes to provide live streaming services. These changes will allow music artists to charge for their live streams, the integration of live streams as into online-only event pages and the return of Live With, which allows co-hosts to join a stream.

Artists like Sofi Tukker and Melissa Ethridege will be hosting multiple live streams on Facebook, while others such as Rodrigo Y Gabriela, Jewel and Andrew Bird have hosted live stream concerts for channels such as The Current. While it announced these changes, the platform has not detailed when they will go into effect.

As of press time Facebook is adding links to streams to help benefit nonprofit companies. This latest action is following the move of other platforms such as Instagram and YouTube, which some artists such as Erykah Badu have utilized for paid streams, and StageIt. StageIt is an app that allows for payment and tipping options for its virtual concerts, which it does not archive or duplicate.

Live events and large gatherings across the world have been completely put on hold as the COVID-19 pandemic continues to force people into quarantine, causing artists to resort to live streamed performances to recoup some of their lost revenues, or to help assist with charity work. The Governor of California Gavin Newsom stated that concerts and sports gatherings are unlikely to return this summer, while some health care experts have projected that concerts may be unable to return until 2021.