In another blow to Twitch, internet personalities Lannan “LazarBeam” Eacott, Elliott “Muselk” Watkins and Rachell “Valkyrae” Hofstetter announced deals to stream exclusively on YouTube Gaming, CNBC reports.
All three are seasoned content creators who experienced tremendous growth over the past few years, largely due to their interest in the wildly successful cultural sensation Fortnite: Battle Royale.
Muselk and LazarBeam are members of the Click Crew, a team of Australian creators who operate under the umbrella of Click Management. Muselk co-founded Click Management in 2016 and has since helped facilitate its creators’ explosive growth.
Both are known for creating hilarious videos and performing in-game stunts, such as Muselk’s ill-fated attempt to rescue a player named Chappadoodle that ultimately received a tribute within Fortnite’s game map. Muselk has more than 8 million followers on YouTube, while LazarBeam has more than 12 million.
Both made an impact on the gaming community primarily with their pre-recorded videos, choosing to livestream far less frequently than most professional gaming streamers. However, it appears that will change with these new YouTube exclusivity commitments.
Valkyrae has amassed nearly a million followers on Twitch. However, her YouTube follower base is rapidly catching up to her Twitch numbers and it’s likely she receives more total views on the Google-owned platform. The 100 Thieves member follows her friend and companion CouRageJD, who moved to YouTube from Twitch just two months ago.
LazarBeam was quick to take to Twitter to deny that he slept through the biggest announcement of his career.
Muselk took the announcement more seriously, choosing to use it to promote his first stream as a charity event to raise funds to fight the fires currently ravaging his home country.
The Click Crew recently hosted a successful charity livestream in support of the continent in crisis. Click Crew member Kathleen “Loserfruit” Belsten, hosted the stream on her channel, which culminated in more than $200,000 (USD) in donations.
Valkyrae approached the announcement with a more serious tone, releasing a video to express her appreciation for the community that supports her.
It seems Twitch competitors’ efforts to develop exclusive streaming deals with popular internet personalities are paying off. Platforms such as Mixer, Facebook and YouTube, all of which have signed cultivated exclusivity deals with major streamers, appear to have impacted on Twitch’s overall market share in 2019, according to CNBC. A recent report also shows the platform fell short of its advertising revenue goals in 2019.
Still, for the time being, Twitch remains dominant in the streaming space. Time will tell whether these competitors have what it takes to successfully take on Twitch and fully capitalize on livestreamed gaming content.
Source: CNBC
