Twitch Poised to Surpass 40 Million American Viewers by 2021
If you love streaming, chances are you’re a fan of Twitch. This streaming service is incredibly popular, especially in the United States. In fact, according to market research company eMarketer, Twitch is projected to reach over 40 million American viewers by next year.
As the largest platform for streaming video game content, Twitch is ahead of competitors like YouTube, Mixer, and Facebook Gaming. Forecasting analyst Peter Vahle explains, “Twitch has built a loyal and engaged audience by allowing viewers to directly interact with their favorite streamers.”
Growth Potential and Challenges for Twitch
Based on eMarketer’s data, it is expected that Twitch’s viewer base will continue to grow through 2023, reaching approximately 47 million people in the U.S. alone. However, despite these impressive numbers, there are indications that Twitch’s growth is starting to slow down.
From 2018 to 2019, Twitch experienced a 23.5 percent increase in viewers, but this year, the increase was only 14.3 percent. If this trend continues, Twitch’s growth may be hindered due to rising competition from Microsoft, YouTube, and Facebook.
Departure of Popular Streamers and Impact on Twitch
Over the past year, Twitch has witnessed some of its most popular streamers leaving the platform to join new websites, such as Mixer and YouTube Gaming. High-profile names like Tyler “Ninja” Blevins, Michael “Shroud” Grzesiek, Jack “CouRage” Dunlop, and Jeremy “Disguised Toast” Wang have all gone their separate ways, taking a significant portion of their viewership with them.
This exodus marked a low point for Twitch. There was a 9.8 percent decrease in hours watched, bringing the total number down to 82.7 million hours, as reported by a Newzoo study. This represents the lowest number of hours watched on the platform since the third quarter of 2018.
Strategies to Attract Talent and Viewership
Twitch is taking steps to address this issue by signing exclusive deals with some of its larger, full-time streamers such as Benjamin “DrLupo” Lupo, Saquib “Lirik” Zahid, and Timothy “TimTheTatman” Betar. However, the platform still needs to find ways to expand its services in order to attract more talent and viewership.
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