Twitch and YouTube Phasing Out Big-Money Content Deals with Livestreaming Gamers
Popular livestreaming platforms, Amazon’s Twitch and Alphabet’s YouTube, are changing their strategy and phasing out big-money content deals with top gaming influencers. This comes after years of offering seven- and eight-figure deals to attract exclusive livestreaming talent. Twitch CEO, Dan Clancy, expressed that the bidding war for these deals wasn’t sustainable in the long run. YouTube is also reducing the size and length of contracts with gaming livestreamers, according to anonymous sources.
Both platforms previously believed that paying top gamers to stream their live gameplay would attract more fans and increase advertising revenue. However, Twitch has started allowing partnered streamers to broadcast simultaneously on other platforms, including YouTube, TikTok, and Instagram. While there are still some custom deals at Twitch, they are moving towards standard terms for most streamers.
Switching from Twitch to YouTube has caused some streamers to lose their live audiences, prompting them to return to Twitch, which is widely recognized as the leader in live game streaming. In the past, Twitch paid $90 million to stream the Overwatch League exclusively, but viewership declined when YouTube took over the rights. In the current landscape, Kick, a niche streaming service, has reportedly offered large deals for nonexclusive streaming rights and has signed both big-name creators and a significant number of small to midsize creators.
