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Ninja’s new streaming deal has been a mixed bag for Mixer and Twitch, data shows

Two months ago, famous streamer Ninja left Twitch for the Microsoft-owned Mixer. He cited various reasons for the switch, including his desire to get back in touch with his roots. Following his move, Streamlabs and Newzoo have compiled a series of reports and data showcasing how much the streamer has impacted both Mixer and Twitch.

Although Microsoft managed to secure one of the most popular streamers on the internet right now, Mixer has seen a decrease in a few metrics. The platform’s average concurrent viewership (CCV) is down by 11.7% compared to its previous quarter. Fortunately, Mixer has seen an increase in both gamings hours streamed and unique channels. Within the last quarter, the platform has seen its number of distinct channels double.

Mixer Total Hours Q3 Chart
Image used with permission by copyright holder

Meanwhile, the total amount of gaming hours streamed on Mixer has increased by 188%, tripling the number from its previous quarter. Not only that, but Mixer’s total hours watched increased from the last quarter by 86.8 million. Based on the time frame and the data presented, we can infer that the increase in hours streamed is thanks at least in part to Ninja’s presence. More importantly, it suggests that Ninja’s influence may have encouraged others to live stream content on Mixer as well.

Not surprisingly, Ninja’s departure has also impacted Twitch’s numbers. Despite that platform experiencing significant growth in some areas, the reports have shown that the platform is steadily declining in other metrics. The number of distinct channels and total streaming hours is declining. This quarter alone, Twitch is averaging roughly 87.3 million hours, a 2.3 million-hour decrease compared to its previous quarter.

Not all the metrics have been decreasing, however — the platform has experienced a (slight) increase in gaming hours watched, but nothing significant. The number of unique channels streaming on Twitch has also been declining quarter over quarter, with the current number sitting at 3.77 million different channels. As far as Twitch’s average concurrent viewers and viewers per channel goes, the platform numbers saw its CCV increase by 3.5%, and average viewers per channel have risen by 3.6%.

Twitch Total Hours Q3 Chart (2019)
Image used with permission by copyright holder

Many predicted that Twitch would see a massive drop across all metrics after Ninja’s departure. Quarter numbers have shown that both platforms have experienced both wins and losses, and it looks like the playing field has been evened out between both platforms. Of course, it has only been two months since Ninja switched streaming platforms, so it is too early to tell how Twitch will be affected in the long run.

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Taylor Lyles
Based out of Baltimore, Maryland, Taylor is a contributing writer for Digital Trends covering the latest news in the computer…
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