Facebook is shelling out $50 million to celebrities and media companies as an incentive for them to create video for Facebook Live.
Buzzfeed and The New York Times are the two highest-paid media companies helping jump-start Facebook's live platform, with contracts worth more than $3 million each, The Wall Street Journal reported. But there are 17 contracts on the list for more than $1 million each.
The celebrities on the list include chef Gordon Ramsay, comedian Kevin Hart and NFL quarterback Russell Wilson.
Celebrities get the most engagement with their live videos. The Information found that live content from celebrities accounts for more than 60 percent of the top 200 videos, while media companies account for only about 14 percent.
Facebook still hasn't rolled out any plans for creators to make money off their videos, which is likely why the social media site is paying companies and celebrities to spend time on the platform.
But Facebook seems confident that live video is the next big step in keeping users engaged. The company has said that people spend three times longer watching live video and comment 10 times more.
This video includes clips from Facebook and images from Getty Images. Music provided courtesy of APM Music.
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