Livestream platforms see spike in attention thanks to COVID-19

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Livestreamshopping has been in China since 2016 - when online giants Taobao and JD.com launchedlivestream platforms.

But the industry has become even more popular during the covid-19 pandemic, as people gravitate to shopping online rather than in brick-and-mortar stores.

By some estimates,live-streamshopping is a near $70 billion industry inside China, attracting influencers who scour markets and malls for items to peddle to live audiences via social media.

Once an obscure form of shopping,livestreaming is predicted to change the habits of global consumers, whose footfall has already headed from the high street to online marketplaces.

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