In a remarkable turn of events, Kick, an up-and-coming platform dedicated to challenging the long-standing market dominance of Twitch, has made waves in the streaming industry with a game-changing acquisition. This momentous development comes merely a day after Kick made waves by successfully signing Felix "xQc" Lengyel, widely renowned as one of Twitch's most influential and popular male streamers.Kick made its debut in December last year, quickly gaining popularity due to its relaxed policies and higher payouts compared to Twitch. These factors greatly contributed to the platform's success, leading to numerous prominent Twitch streamers switching to Kick, with many others expressing their intention to follow suit in the near future. However, the competition within the streaming industry intensified recently when Rumble announced the signing of several major streaming stars, including Kai Cenat, iShowSpeed, and Mizkif. This dealt a significant blow to Kick, as many had anticipated these streaming stars to choose Kick as their next platform if they decided to switch.Nevertheless, Kick has now stepped up its game, surprising the streaming community by securing a deal with xQc for a staggering $70-100 million. Just hours later, the platform reportedly signed Amouranth, who held the title of Twitch's most-watched female streamer last year. Although the specific details of Amouranth's contract with Kick have not been disclosed yet, her announcement video shows her watching xQc's Kick signing report and humorously asking, "So, the 100 million dollar deals have started. Can I get one of those?" This is followed by Amouranth packing her stuff and heading to Trainwreck-backed Kick.com.
These recent developments indicate that Kick is determined to fiercely compete in the streaming industry and attract top talent. Amouranth, with her current following of over 6.3 million on Twitch and years of streaming experience, is expected to have a significant impact. Only time will tell how Kick will fare in the streaming world, but it is worth noting that the platform has performed exceptionally well so far, as revealed by a recent Kick viewership report.
It is also worth mentioning that Twitch recently faced significant backlash due to the introduction of new advertising guidelines. However, these guidelines were later reversed following widespread criticism. The controversy surrounding these guidelines even prompted MrBeast to suggest hosting a stream on Kick as a show of support for Twitch streamers and their protests against the platform's advertising policies. These events highlight the importance for Twitch to exercise caution and implement necessary measures in order to maintain its position as the leading streaming platform, especially in this era of heightened competition.