Kick’s Popularity Causing Streamers to Choose

Amazon has been firmly entrenched atop the video game streaming platform industry for many years thanks to their highly popular streaming platform Twitch despite heavy competition over the years from the likes of Microsoft and Tencent backed platforms.

But the Kick streaming platform may be providing it’s most unique challenger to date, and the rise in popularity of Kick is forcing long-time Twitch streamers, as well as streamers from other platforms, to have to seriously consider a move to Kick, which is owned by Stake.

Félix “xQc” Lengyel and Kaitlyn “Amouranth” Siragusa were two of Twitch’s biggest stars with millions of followers on their Twitch channels, but in June both creators signed lucrative contracts with Kick, opting to head to a platform with looser moderation rules in place.

That continued a trend of Twitch streamers leaving the Amazon giant for Kick, despite widespread criticism over the personalities Kick has attracted and it’s reported ties to the gambling industry, casino streams, and more (via Washington Post).

“I was the top female streamer on Twitch, but they never reached out with any recognition,” Amouranth said in an interview with NBC News. “On the other hand, Kick is open from the beginning and communicative. They are open to hearing suggestions. There are decision-makers available for creators to discuss about the platform’s future.”

“Kick is allowing me to try and do things I haven’t been able to before,” xQc said in an official statement. “I’m extremely excited to take this opportunity and maximize it into new creative and fresh ideas over coming years.”

Some of the former staff at Twitch, such as Twitch’s former director of creator development, Marcus “djWheat” Graham, have taken to social media to slam the streaming platform going as far as to call it a “sham.”

“There are so many red flags present that it is embarrassing watching people who I respect give this platform an ounce of credibility,” Graham said in a post.

Dr. Timothy Fong, a co-director of the UCLA Gambling Studies Program also pointed to the lack of transparency on Kick regarding the gambling content that exists, lives, and is prominent on their platform, saying it’s risky.

“They don’t call themselves a gaming company, and they’re not a gambling company,” he said. “It looks like YouTube, but it also looks like PlayStation 5, but it also looks like Las Vegas.”

“There is a reason gambling has to be regulated: for the public health and safety of its consumers,” Fong said.

Kick has responded, with an official spokesman (co-owner Eddie Craven) for the platform noting that gambling is popular on many platforms besides Kick and that “Kick has heard the call against gambling and we created a toggle feature found on any user’s dashboard that allows you to remove all gambling content from your Kick experience.”

Kick doesn’t seem to be backing down, and Twitch now has yet another competitor to deal with as Kick is positioned to be it’s biggest competitor since Mixer.