It used to be the case that buskers, those poor struggling street musicians, used to be grateful for a few 10ps dropped in a battered hat.

Now they can earn from £500 to £800 performing for an hour on a ground-breaking new app.

Oxfordshire musicians are signing up to work with a new company co-founded by Oxford-based entrepreneur Sam Jones and Eric Zhang.

Mr Jones has created an app called OOOOO where real people make entertaining videos showcasing items such as cosmetics, trainers, electronics, handbags and wine and giving their opinion on them.

OOOOO sends the products from leading brands to content creators for free.

During their show people watching buy the items and OOOOO takes a commission from any sales. The creator also takes a cut – anything up to £800 for the hour they go live.

The social commerce or “live shopping” industry is worth nearly 200 billion dollars in China.

Mr Jones said: “The next billion-dollar brand will not be a clothing company. It will be a person. We are trying to support the next generation of selling, which is real people sharing real opinions.”

“There will always be a need for physical shops in great locations – but I believe they will evolve into studios. These shops will act like studios, full of creators broadcasting to their followers, and orders will be sent from a centralised distribution centre.

"We want to play a part in this evolution.”

He added that the OOOOO app became one of the top three most downloaded apps in the UK without the company spending any money on advertising. Instead they reward people for inviting their friends to the app with gift boxes worth up to £195.

The team at OOOOO are currently in discussions with the Oxford Busking Society and have just taken a large office at Oxford Science and Innovation (OSI) which they are turning into a studio where buskers from around the country can go and perform, sell and get paid.

The busking.tv shows will be shown on the app regularly.

On the app last night, Oxford-born musician Ben J. Cartwright earned £800 in an hour by singing. The gig was a lifeline as all his gigs have been cancelled due to Covid and his wife is an NHS worker.

Barny Holmes, who has supported Ed Sheeran and sung on The X Factor and The Voice, will also be on the app. He has also had no work since the pandemic started.

Mr Jones explained: “The reason I designed the show was to pay people £200 to help them out and give them a platform to perform again.”

“It was never about the money – it was about helping people grow. That is how the busking.tv channel is designed.”

To join the OOOOO Squad, register at the website https://ooooo.com/ and send in a short video sharing any product that you love.