New figures on the market share of various streaming services show that Facebook Gaming and Mixer can boast strong growth numbers in 2019. However, neither poses a serious threat to market leader Twitch – at least not yet.
Here is the distribution: According to a market analysis by the analytics site Arsenal.gg (via StreamElements), Facebook and Mixer claimed about 3% of the volume in the streaming sector in 2019. In 2018, it was still about 1% each. In numbers, this means:
- Facebook Gaming: 356,242,965 hours watched (210% more than in 2018)
- Mixer: 353,777,685 hours watched (149% more than in 2018)
- Twitch: 9,340,229,175 hours watched (20% more than in 2018)
- YouTube Gaming: 2,310,000,000 hours watched (16% more than in 2018)
It is clear that Twitch significantly leads at first place – despite the enormous growth of two to three times as many viewing hours for Facebook Gaming and Mixer: Twitch still holds about 73% of the market share in the streaming sector:
- While Facebook and Mixer are growing relatively speaking at a very high level
- when looking at the absolute numbers, these are just peanuts compared to the growth at Twitch
Success is coming, but it’s still taking time
Here’s how Mixer and Facebook have grown: To achieve these high growth figures, both Facebook and Mixer (Microsoft) have invested significantly. Both companies have secured exclusive contracts with major streamers:
- First, on August 1, 2019, Ninja moved from Twitch to Mixer
- then shroud followed
- shortly thereafter the Destiny 2 mogul Gothalion disappeared to Mixer
- Facebook was able to secure DisguisedToast among others
On the new platform Mixer, shroud and Ninja do not have as many viewers as they did previously on Twitch. Nevertheless, they seem to be doing well enough there to stay on Mixer.
Can they pose a threat to Twitch? At the moment, it is still unclear if and when Facebook or Mixer will truly catch up to Twitch. The Chief Executive Officer of StreamElements, Doron Nir, says:
Even with huge influencer deals, there has yet to be a success overnight, as building a successful streaming platform takes time.
Both Facebook and Mixer are in a position where they now need to attract good talent to grow. However, Twitch is also securing the support of major streamers with exclusive contracts.
It is a good time to secure a piece of the pie and grow larger. The investments are definitely there, as at least Ninja and shroud are likely earning quite well:
