- Twitch has been criticized over the 50% cut it takes from content creators’ subs
- On several occasions, streamers have spoken out against the practice
- Now, a new petition hopes to galvanize streamers into taking a stand
Twitch and YouTube are vying for the best content – this is no secret. While the crossfire may have not been ideal if you are sitting atop the executive pecking order at either company, it has certainly been good for streamers who now demand fairer pay and rates. With the cases of streamer burnout increasing, this is not an unreasonable thing to ask.
Twitch Streamers Ask for Bigger Cuts of the Subs
YouTube Gaming has been stealing some of the Amazon-owned company’s thunder. This is understandable. With the Google streaming service trying to claw away a bigger share all the time, many streamers have been flocking to the seemingly better platform that is YouTube.
Of course, others have thrown their hats in the ring, including Facebook and even Trovo, a Tencent-backed company that is slowly but steadily establishing a presence. Twitch’s steep affiliation rules, though, have been grinding on content creator’s nerves for some time now.
In some of the top streamers’ estimates, you may spend years broadcasting to no one until the magic happens. Then, there have been content creators and community members alleging that Twitch is discriminating. As things stand, Twitch splits the subs halfway, meaning that 50% is gobbled back up by the platform to offer its sterling service.
This argument has grown a little weary on people spending years trying to make it. A recent debate appeared on social media where content creators called for an evener distribution of the subs. This has been followed up with a petition to make things better.
Content creator @ChrispyGameplay was adamant in his request. “Streamers, it’s time to band together. 99.9% of Twitch streamers get 50% of their payout taken from them by a Twitch, an absolutely outdated payment model,” he argued.
The Money Twitch Makes Is Streamers’ Money
He then voiced his concerns that Twitch rewarded content creators 50% of what they had effectively earned on the platform by developing content that is entertaining for their followers, and by extension, Twitch’s registered users.
At the time of writing, the petition has gathered over 15,000 signatures and it has elicited hundreds of supported comments from community members. One by blk_diamond83 read:
“As someone who doesn't stream but a big supporter of content creators, It's disheartening to know that 50% of the money I intend to go toward the creators, end up going to Twitch/Amazon. Higher revenue sharing will allow more creators to go from part-time to full time, make more engaging content and enhance the overall quality of their production. Make it so!”
Petition signee blk_diamond83
YouTube Gaming was mentioned again in the comments, with content creators acknowledging the platform’s current attraction of offering more-evenly split revenue. Famously, TimTheTatman and Dr Lupo both confirmed that their arrangement with YouTube Gaming ended up resulting in more quality time with their families.
Twitch has given no sign that it would consider revising its model for now, but this would mean more streamers turning to alternative services. This begs the question whether these other services would choose to follow a quasi-monopoly model and cut close to Twitch’s revenue-sharing model.
This doesn’t seem very likely, as Twitch has a significantly bigger user base. Twitch still dominates in terms of having the most eyeballs, or some 140 million unique visitors every month. The exact numbers are still a little hard to pinpoint because of their sensitive commercial value. In the meantime, the fight for better rates on Twitch for dedicated content creators carries on.
