Ludwig slams potential Twitch sub paycut hurting small streamers

Streaming giant Ludwig ‘Ludwig’ Ahgren hit out at Twitch over the reported changes they’re making to revenue split over subscriptions, calling it “crazy” while also pointing out how much some streamers are set to lose. 

As Twitch has gotten bigger over the last few years, it has become a legitimate way for content creators to make a living – and then some. Most streamers, who have a partner contract with Twitch, have a 50/50 split on subscriptions. So, a $5 sub earns them $2.50. Some streamers have more lucrative deals with a higher split too.

Over the last few years, Twitch has invoked the wrath of streamers, however, with the introduction of more ads and localized pricing on subscriptions – with streamers losing out even more on their sub split.

The Amazon-owned platform is reportedly eyeing further changes too, doing away with the higher split and introducing even more ads. And, according to Ludwig, they could go even further.

Unsplash: @thomasdebraekeleer/Twitch

The rumored changes to Twitch partnership include decreased sub revenue, more ads, and removal of exclusivity.

The former Twitch star, who jumped to YouTube back in November, discussed the changes in his April 28 video, showing just how much the reported changes will impact smaller streamers.

• Read More: Ibai reaches 10 million Twitch followers as Spanish streamers dominate site

“They’re considering taking people who are currently making 70% for every sub and just slicing it down to 50%, which is kind of crazy,” he said. “That’s a 20% pay cut for thousands of streamers. That’s a lot of people who are going to be losing a lot of money.”

Ludwig noted that the changes won’t affect some of the top streamers, like xQc and Mizkif, given they already make obscene amounts. Though, he added that smaller streamers will get “slammed” by using the example of Smash Ultimate commentator CONEY, who has around 2,000 subs and could go from making around $84,000 a year to $60,000 by just losing $1 a month per sub.

The YouTuber streamer also suggested that Twitch could, before long, do away with Twitch Prime if they’re looking for other avenues to increase profitability and stop “hemorrhaging” money.

“Maybe there’s a day where they lose Twitch Prime,” he added. “They know internally that doing that is fire bells ringing, this is OK with the dog sitting around fire meme. It wouldn’t go over well.”

While Ludwig noted that Twitch retains a few advantages over YouTube, it’s clearly not all rosy on the side of the Amazon-owned platform.