On April 1, 2020, the entrepreneur Luo Yonghao held his first live-stream sale on Douyin. The stream was billed with the words: “This stream basically makes no money. We are making a friend” (jiao ge pengyou). Sales passed 110 million yuan, and more than 48 million people watched.
His live-stream business is run by a company called Beijing Jiao Ge Pengyou Digital Technology.