Ninja (Tyler Blevins) switched his streaming content over to Microsoft run “Mixer” on August 1st and has been migrating his viewers over to the service over the past couple of weeks. He took to Twitter to express his disgust over the fact that Twitch was running ads for other streamers on his channel’s landing page. The disgust didn’t stop there though, somehow a channel that was showing hardcore pornography was featured on Ninja’s page and this made him understandably upset. Again, Ninja posted about his frustration on Twitter and the CEO of Twitch was quick to apologize.
There is a lot of discussion in the gaming and streaming world about who owns the channels that streamers use to broadcast and who should be able to decide what is aired on the channel when the streamer isn’t live. Obviously, this affects you, as a parent in several different ways. First of all, your kids are likely going to be watching Ninja over on Mixer now. Secondly, you need to know that pornography can show up on these live streaming services very easily. You also should be aware of the money and politics currently involved in the video game streaming industry. It’s a major business now, and your kids are the target consumer.
What is Mixer?
Mixer started out as “Beam,” a streaming platform that claimed to offer a better service and higher quality streaming ability that competitor Twitch. In 2016 Beam was purchased by Microsoft and in 2017 Beam was rebranded as Mixer. The service still works to compete against Twitch but claims to offer a better ad share program to gamers as well as a better viewing experience for fans. The service has already made a few deals with pro-gaming leagues and now has acquired Ninja as an exclusive streamer on their platform. Just like Twitch, Mixer offers multiple types of streams including video gaming, tabletop gaming, vloggers, IRL (in real life), podcasts and more.
Since being purchased by Microsoft, Mixer is now available on Xbox, and on Chromecast and other streaming devices. It is becoming more and more popular and Ninja’s exclusive contract will guarantee even more growth. Twitch is suffering the same fate that many market leaders share. It can be difficult to balance making the kind of profit that a company that size needs to operate and keeping the same charm that your service had when it gained all of the popularity that you profit from. It seems that there is room in the video game live-streaming market for another service.
What Parents Should Know
Video game streaming and esports are some of the fastest growing forms of entertainment ever. Advertisers are jumping on board and monetizing every minute your kids spend watching other people play video games. When you think about it, the video itself is a form of product placement for the game they are playing. When advertisers get involved, things often get messy. Content creators get tired of their media being turned into a way for someone else to make money. This makes them go look for a better deal. This is what has happened with Ninja.
You need to be aware that when people broadcast on live-streaming services there is usually a live chat going at the same time. Your kids can be in contact with strangers from all over the world. Also, it is very difficult to keep inappropriate content off of live streaming channels due to the fact that is being broadcasted in near real time. You should know what your kids enjoy watching on Mixer, Twitch, YouTube Live, and any other live-streaming platforms they watch. Know that many gamers use adult language and discuss adult topics on their streams. Most of the time those apps are rated 17+ because of the potential for adult content. Keep that in mind when deciding what you allow your child to watch online.
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