(Yicai) April 10 -- JD.Com's shares rose after the Chinese e-commerce giant reportedly said it will make available CNY1 billion (USD140 million) in incentives to attract more video creators and multi-channel networks.

JD.Com [HKG: 9618] closed 4.7 percent higher at HKD106.40 (USD13.58) a share in Hong Kong today, after earlier surging by as much as 6.3 percent. In New York yesterday, its stock [NASDAQ: JD] rose 2.9 percent to USD26.70.   

JD will provide cash subsidies to video influencers in over 20 fields, including computers, communication and consumer electronics, household appliances, pets, fashion, sports, and automobiles, The Paper reported today, citing the Beijing-based company. Each creator can get up to CNY30,000 (USD4,150).

Content creators will simultaneously enjoy subsidies based on views and commissions for influencer marketing, according to the report. JD is developing top key opinion leaders and plans to select the top 100 by the end of the year. 

JD has also prepared CNY5 million (USD691,330) in incentives for multi-channel networks, which can win monthly cash subsidies if the influencers they bring reach a certain number and quality. It will also set a one billion online traffic reward to offer more opportunities for exposure to high-quality and original content. 

JD's indicators for video content, including orders, user numbers, and time duration, surged four times in 2023 from a year earlier and doubled in the first quarter of this year, according to the firm’s data. It posted over 50,000 videos during a lunar new year promotional event from Jan. 15 to Feb. 17, with a gross merchandise value of over CNY20 million (USD2.8 million). 

During last year's Double 11 shopping festival, some 26,000 video creators on JD generated a GMV of nearly CNY100 million (USD13.8 million). The number of viewers of its procurement and sales livestream studio exceeded 380 million. 

JD's net profit soared 133 percent to CNY24.2 billion (USD3.4 billion) in the 12 months ended Dec. 31, it said in an earnings report released last month. Revenue rose 3.7 percent to CNY1.09 trillion (USD150.6 billion), after climbing 9.9 percent in 2022. Based on non-generally accepted accounting principles, profit jumped 25 percent to CNY35.2 billion.

Editor: Martin Kadiev