Recently, popular Twitch streamers such as Ludwig, Lilypichu, Myth, and many more have moved over to stream on YouTube instead of Twitch. The question is, why? Why would they leave a website that is built for live broadcasting for another that is mostly prioritizing well-edited videos? And the answer is more spread out than many may think.
Many people would assume that these big names are transitioning over to YouTube simply because of “The Big Pay Check” when in reality, it could be because of the concept of reach. In order to grow on a social platform, your content would need to branch out to find new audiences to consistently consume your content in order to gain profit and growth. YouTube’s recommended system is a lot more fleshed out and proper than that of Twitch.
Comparatively, YouTube recommends content that the viewer would most likely look into, while Twitch recommends in a way that is similar to “The rich get richer” – always prioritizing the bigger names rather than the small influencers that are putting the same amount, if not more effort into streaming.
Harris Heller once said that “YouTube has existed longer than Twitch has.” Naturally, people have been using YouTube a lot more and creators have built a more solid fan base on YouTube, so it would not entirely make sense for them to transition their viewers to another website for scheduled live content. Why not have it on the same platform instead?
Streamers on YouTube like Ludwig mention how he has also been able to transport his current viewers to a newly uploaded video, increasing the video’s popularity and influencing the algorithm to push their video to be recommended to more and more people.
Of course, making the move from Twitch to YouTube is a grand risk because of many things that include, but is not limited to, competition, and oversaturation. When it comes to streaming on YouTube, is a whole new form of content for people to watch. Would they be more interested in watching an edited video, or a Livestream? Naturally, on a website that is known primarily for edited videos, people will gravitate towards just that.
Every single person has their go-to when it comes to what they want to gain from what platform they are on. If they want short-formed, ridiculous content, they would go to TikTok, if they want long-form highly edited videos, they would go to YouTube, if pictures then Instagram, and if live streams, they would go to Twitch. So to completely change and expand the niche from being just videos to live streams and short-form content, is quite a big step for YouTube to take as a company and as a brand, and an even bigger step for influencers to host live streams and compete with numerous other videos, other influencers, and other websites that potential audiences might gravitate towards to.
Twitch is a great platform when it comes to streaming content, the problem is, when streaming is becoming a hot topic, all other platforms wish to take up the mantle of streaming. You can find people streaming on YouTube, Instagram, TikTok, Facebook, and even Twitter. The difference is discoverability where creators can create content or other forms of media that build a connection with an audience and grow stronger relationships through streaming.
Granted, getting a huge paycheck is obviously a good enough reason for influencers to change platforms, such as Ninja and Shroud once did with Mixer before it shut down due to high competition and the high cost of maintaining the product. And as Ludwig says, eventually “YouTube will grow” to have the same standards and product quality as that of Twitch when it comes to streaming, and little by little will they trickle in some new streamers without having to use a massive paycheck, though it would help regardless.
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