Facebook tests paid subgroups in subscription plan

Under-fire Facebook, the social media giant that renamed itself ‘Meta’ recently, is testing ways for creators to make money through Facebook Groups, such as users paying fees for exclusive access to content or conversations within subgroups.

Facebook said the test was part of its paid subscription effort. The company is one of many tech giants that have been working to woo social media creators and their large followings through payments and new tools.

Facebook said group administrators will be able to run e-commerce shops to sell merchandise or create community fundraisers, which could offset the costs of running a group.

On Wednesday, CEO Mark Zuckerberg also said that creators would be able to share custom links allowing them to accept payments directly. Facebook launched its subscriptions service last year.

The company announced a series of updates to its groups product during its live-streamed Communities Summit. It said the subgroups feature, which can be free or paid, would allow members to break off within groups to focus on certain regions or topics.