Microsoft had its attempt at rivaling the domination of Twitch in the video game streaming sphere with its Mixer program. Mixer started to attack Twitch’s control a few months ago by plucking some of their largest streamers: Ninja, Shroud, and, KingGothalion. This approach is not too different from Epic Games’ approach of claiming game exclusivity deals to combat Steam’s hegemony on the PC games distribution market.
Unlike Epic Games, Mixer was not able to keep up and will be folding on July 22, 2020. Microsoft stated that Mixer was not growing its communities fast enough. The fact that Mixer will only up for month after its announcement of its closing and since it has not been long since first signing on Ninja for $20 million to $30 million yearly, suggests that Mixer was not just operating at a loss, which is normal for new divisions at large corporations but instead was hemorrhaging funds.
Microsoft is not leaving its community completely dry and has paired with Facebook Gaming. Facebook Gaming has a much larger community that Mixer bringing in 700 million streamers and viewers monthly. Partners on Mixer that transition to Facebook Gaming will gain partner status and their previous agreement with Mixer will be honored with Facebook Gaming. Streamers that were monetized on Mixer will be immediately eligible for Facebook’s level up program to continue growing their sphere and making revenue off of their streams.
Lastly, Viewer accounts that have a pro subscription or have an outstanding balance of embers will receive compensation in the form of an Xbox gift card. With the closing of Mixer, all of the streamers that have made exclusivity deals are now free to move back to Twitch or any other streaming service as well as Facebook, allowing them to use multiple services or re-enter negotiations for a better exclusive deal.