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Exploring Kick - The Streaming Platform That Has Recruited xQc

If you're looking to see your most beloved streamer, it is likely that you'll use Twitch. Is that however about to alter? Rival Kick has caused a stir in the news by hiring Amouranth and xQc, two of the most prominent personalities on the Amazon-owned platform. The success of the renowned converts has spurred other less prominent streamers to pursue the same footsteps, as the potential of acquiring a bigger financial reward lends further impetus. Opinions are divided on the new entrant, but not everyone is persuaded. It is evident that Twitch has experienced hardships lately - some streamers resigned in objection to regulations designed to make advertising more exacting, resulting in Twitch having to forgo them. Within a period of 48 hours, Amouranth and xQc engaged in Kick. It has been reported that xQc was offered a contract worth around $100m (£78m), despite already having a presence on both platforms. If you check out Kick, which became available in January 2021, you'll find it bears a striking resemblance to Twitch. The usual assortment of livestreams rolls across the page, allowing you to filter by game title or category. At the chat, fans can communicate with each other and the streamer, and have the option to subscribe to or tip the originator. One of the main advantages of Kick is the payment option available. As of now, content creators are getting to hang onto 95% of their subscription income, a far greater proportion than Twitch's 50% and YouTube's 70%. For streamers like Dean (AverageDad), switching is an easy decision. He inquires as to why one would not wish to double their earnings when compared to what they could make on another platform. Dean, hailing from Greater Manchester, quit Twitch in the past month and is now streaming on multiple platforms featuring Kick, which he believes will be offering Twitch "a good old challenge". He states that content creators wish to generate income however they can. Kick has a more lenient policy regarding content. Gambling streams, a prominent feature of the platform, have frequently been a subject of discussion given their regular presence amongst the top three categories. Ed Craven, the billionaire owner of Stake.com, a crypto and betting site that sponsors Alfa Romeo's F1 team and Everton FC, is one of the founders of Kick. Twitch recently enforced a gambling ban, and Stake.com was one of the accounts affected. Pokimane, a widely-followed streamer, has communicated that Kick's association with gambling makes her uncomfortable. She informed the 9.3m people who follow her that relocating would be against her principles. Dean disregards much of the criticism as a " smear effort" because there are still some gambling streams on Twitch, including slots and roulette streams from organizations that are sanctioned to offer them. Streamers have affirmed that Kick is a considerably hostile environment, specifically for those of the LGBT community and for racial minorities. It is reported that there are fewer choices when it comes to addressing harassment and abuse. NicScreams, an individual from Leeds, commented that they would not feel safe streaming on Kick if they did it with their community of followers. She has qualms over certain prominent acquisitions, particularly Adin Ross who was suspended from Twitch. Nic declares that he is very discriminatory towards those in the LGBT community and displays blatant hatred towards women. No one is held accountable" Footage of him mistreating women due to their looks has been uploaded to the web, yet no repercussions arise. He continues to broadcast and earn money on Kick. BBC Newsbeat has sought a statement from Kick and is awaiting a reply. It's reasonable to note that the platform does not permit unrestricted content, as it has regulations against drug use and discrimination. xQc has already encountered difficulty due to copywriting violation, when he live streamed The Dark Knight, a Batman movie, on his page. Nevertheless, Nic believes Twitch is more proactive in battling hate speech. She affirms that Twitch will back her up if anything detrimental to her or her community were to occur in her stream. Nic concedes that it has become harder to generate income from Twitch, so she's gone from streaming all day to only part of the time. Despite withdrawing its plans to limit its promotional opportunities, the organization is still pushing forward with a disliked initiative. It is preventing simulcasting, in which streamers broadcast live on multiple platforms simultaneously - something many do to improve their revenue. Nic states that it is financially not beneficial to stream on Twitch. "It feels like Twitch is quick to take away the hard work you put into developing this career or side hustle." Will Kick be successful? Many individuals have observed parallels to Mixer - Microsoft's ill-fated competitor to Twitch. It made news when it secured the signature of renowned Fortnite streamer Ninja in a contract valued at $50m (£39m), however it was closed within a year. Thus far, unsurprisingly, the number of followers Amouranth and xQc have garnered on Kick are far from matching their Twitch follower count. Dean is persuaded that Kick will be extraordinary. He predicts that in five years, conversation will be more focused on Kick than on Twitch. Kicks proposed that additional prominent figures like xQc would join, and Dean believes that that will be beneficial for streamers such as himself. xQc's viewers don't just abandon him when he stops streaming; they don't simply say "I'm done with watching". They'll spend a short amount of time together, possibly take a look at various streams, which will help that platform to continuously grow and progress. Keep up with Newsbeat by following them on Twitter and YouTube. Tune in to Newsbeat at 12:45 and 17:45 on weekdays, or catch the replay here.

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