Twitch Boosts Streamer Earnings in New Revenue Share Deal
In a move to support its content creators, Twitch, a popular streaming site, has unveiled plans to increase the share of revenue streamers receive. Previously, the 50/50 split between Twitch and creators will now shift to 60% for creators with over 100 paid subscribers.
This comes amid a recent restructuring at Twitch, where over 500 employees were let go. The new Twitch Plus program, starting in May, aims to benefit a larger number of streamers and establish a transparent compensation framework.
Twitch CEO Dan Clancy acknowledged the platform’s struggles with profitability, despite having paid out $1 billion to streamers in 2023. In contrast, parent company Amazon reported a substantial profit.
The Twitch Plus program maintains a 70/30 split for more popular users with over 350 paid subscribers. However, the system is adjusted to allow streamers with 300 paid subscribers to qualify for the higher payout, addressing concerns about exclusivity.
Notably, Twitch is removing the previous rule that reduced the revenue split for top earners from 70/30 to 50/50 after reaching $100,000 in earnings. This move could be seen as an effort to retain high-profile creators who may have migrated to competing platforms offering more favorable revenue shares.
Competitors like Kick, which offers a 95% revenue share to streamers, pose a challenge to Twitch’s dominance. YouTube, another rival, provides a 70% share to YouTubers from subscriptions but takes a 30% cut from donations. Twitch, on the other hand, gives streamers the full amount of donations from fans.
This development follows the broader trend in the online content creation industry, where platforms are adjusting revenue-sharing models to attract and retain talent.
The news also comes shortly after top YouTuber MrBeast revealed earnings from content on the X platform, formerly Twitter, which is striving to entice creators with a significant share of its advertising revenue.
Source: BBC (Adapted)
https://www.bbc.com/news/technology-68069397