On the 27th of February, Dan Clancy posted an open letter detailing Twitch’s plans for the rest of 2025 – a post which has now become an annual tradition. As the most popular live-streaming platform, Clancy’s words carry immense weight for all streamers, brands, and organizations that rely on the industry. Amidst concerns over Twitch’s profitability and the rise of competitor platforms, Clancy’s post stresses the importance of maintaining Twitch’s key values. Twitch is a place for community, belonging, and creativity, with Twitch’s many features supporting these endeavors.
The issue is just how many of these features Twitch now has. The Twitch economy and platform have both become incredibly convoluted, requiring whole guides to explain how the platform works and how brands can access the platform’s audience. This can make the ramifications of any proposed changes incredibly difficult to decipher. For that reason, we’ve decided to dig through the key points of Clancy’s open letter to figure out what his vision for Twitch might mean for streamers, brands, and publishers.
For each of the four key areas listed below, we’re looking at Twitch’s past accomplishments, their plans for 2025, and the potential consequences of these changes:
- Collaboration: Making Streaming Together Exciting and Convenient
- Monetization: Opening Up Revenue to All Streamers
- Sponsorships: Connecting Brands with Streamers Natively
- Discoverability: Making Streams and Streamers More Accessible
Twitch Doubles Down On More Collaboration Opportunities
Accomplishments in 2024:
2024 saw the launch of Twitch’s Creator Clubs: Dedicated communities for creators of specific content types supported directly by Twitch staff. Among the six Creator Clubs so far established (including DJs, IRL, and VTubers), there are over 4K Twitch Affiliates and Partners on dedicated Discord servers participating in custom Club events and workshops. Furthermore, Twitch’s Unity Guilds initiative (a program similar to Creator Clubs, but formed around shared identities rather than content types) saw a growth in membership of 142%. Dan Clancy’s primary initiative as Twitch CEO has been to bond streamers together through mutual connection, which both the Creator Clubs and Unity Guilds have facilitated.
Meanwhile, the Stream Together tool directly links streamers through shared streams. These joint streams have become a fan-favorite among viewers, creating unexpected interactions and cross-pollinating audiences. Even better, the recently introduced Drops Ins feature allows streamers to impromptu “Knock” on one another’s streams and ask to join, which leads to more improvisational moments of entertainment and reduces the barrier to entry for collaborations (which previously required excessive organization between parties). These Knocks are also sent via private notification, and can be disabled for streamers that value their privacy.
Plans for 2025:
Apart from continuing to promote the aforementioned features to users, Clancy is taking active steps to bolster them. For starters, the ambassadors count for Unity Guilds will be doubled in 2025 to provide better representation of these groups (along with more transparent Community Guidelines to keep users safe and provide reasonable justifications for bans). For fans of the Stream Together function, Twitch will also be rolling out Shared Hype Trains and Shared Sub Goals. Combining these pre-existing solo functions with Stream Together mitigates the potential imbalance between collaborators while also creating hype around the combined effort of two different streamers’ communities boosting one another.
Implications Moving Forward:
Clancy’s moves in 2025 continue a return to traditional social bonding methods, both with Creator Clubs (which mimic social clubs in real life) and Drop Ins (which borrows friendly, casual slang). Both initiatives remove the friction of collaboration: For big channels, this means surprise collaborations with massive peak viewerships and a sense of spontaneity. For smaller channels, this means reaching out to other creators will be easier than ever. And for fans, of course, more collaboration means more opportunities to discover new favourite streamers (see: Discoverability).
Shared Hype Trains and Shared Sub Goals could be a massive boon to brands. If brands can convince more than one streamer to collaborate on these kinds of events, perhaps supported by Sponsored Subscriptions or Channel Skins (see: Sponsorships), then this could mean reaching an even greater audience with less logistical effort (and potentially new creative influencer marketing activations). Brands focusing on niche content should also consider tapping into Creator Clubs to find a concentrated community of potential partners. For example, a headphones brand could reach out to the DJ Creator Club for sponsorships while generating word-of-mouth marketing between influencers in the Club.
TL;DR: Collaboration tools are Twitch’s strongest and most unique features. Dan Clancy’s genuine passion for exciting collaborations is contagious. Clancy and Twitch’s continued commitment to collaboration initiatives is a massive win for creators (who can cross-pollinate audiences), viewers (who can see more unique collaborations), and brands (who can access larger audiences with more creative marketing activations).
Twitch Opens Up Monetization Opportunities to All Streamers
Accomplishments in 2024:
Twitch has come under fire numerous times for its monetization policies, which are generally less generous than its competitors (such as Kick’s much-touted 95/5 revenue split). In response to this criticism, Twitch updated their Plus Program early in 2024 to increase the revenue share for eligible streamers (with the highest share being a 70/30 split for Level 2 Plus Program members). Since these changes, Twitch reported a 4x increase in the number of Partners participating in the program – though keep in mind, streamers must stay above a certain threshold recurring streamer count to be eligible for the Plus Program. The calculation is a little complex, but one way to qualify would require a streamer to maintain 300 Tier 1 recurring subs per month for three consecutive months. This makes the 70/30 revenue split an extremely exclusive perk.
Plans for 2025:
To address this criticism, Twitch has made the bold move to open up monetization features (including Twitch Subs and Bits) to “most streamers from Day One”. The details on the rules around this policy change are vague at this point, but it sounds like, barring some verification steps, even streamers with only a handful of viewers will be able to monetize their content. This is a big step for a platform where, historically, only a small fraction of streamers have actually been viable for Subs. Some pundits speculate this could either end or redefine the Affiliate status of pre-existing streamers.
Additionally, Twitch is planning to allow streamers to use their earnings to make purchases on Twitch itself. Again, the details of this change haven’t been made clear, but it sounds similar to how Roblox has its own internal economy in which experience creators can purchase UGC, thus keeping user earnings on the platform. Add to this announcement the promise of more site-wide promotions and discounts on Twitch Sub bundles, and it’s clear that Twitch is making moves to drive up sales on the platform beyond ad revenue.
Implications Moving Forward:
Twitch is seemingly in a no-win situation regarding public perception for monetization for smaller channels. Despite many creators pleading for monetization options at the beginning of their live-streaming journey, a number of jilted Affiliates are grumbling over the lowered barrier to entry which they themselves had to clamber over (a somewhat self-centered take on these changes). A more mature criticism of the increased accessibility to monetization notes that smaller streamers won’t be able to make meaningful income with their low viewer counts, and that putting ads on their content is more likely to drive viewers away. In other words, smaller creators will (or should) opt to not put ads on their content anyway. We’ll see the reaction when more concrete details are announced, but for now Twitch continues to search for a well-received balance of monetization policies.
Of course in terms of pure profit, Twitch’s plans for 2025 are a step in the right direction. Twitch has struggled to reach profitability, but skimming even tiny ad revenue across millions of small channels will add up to earnings for the company. Brands also benefit from this move by reaching ever wider audiences, including on small channels that have devoted (and engaged) followers. Twitch’s decision to create purchases for streamers on the platform itself also means their earned ad revenue will potentially recycle back into Twitch’s economy. This could be devastating for third-party merchants that sell overlays, dashboards, emotes, skins etc. if Twitch offers a native alternative to their products.
TL;DR: Monetization liberation may seem like a friendly move to help small streamers generate revenue, but in reality ads will likely just deter curious viewers. Really, this change has been implemented to address Twitch’s profitability problem. Sales events and an on-platform marketplace similarly seek to keep paying users on the platform and away from third-party vendors.
Twitch Promises to Directly Connect Streamers and Brands via Sponsorships
Accomplishments in 2024:
Twitch has been dipping its toe into providing sponsorship opportunities directly on its platform, going beyond simple ads. These baby steps include Sponsored Subscriptions, in which viewers can buy discounted Subs where part of the cost is covered by the sponsor (in exchange for exposure in the participating streamer’s channel). For a more involved partnership, sponsors can also create custom Channel Skins that overlay banners and branding on a streamer’s feed which automatically track CTR, engagement and so forth. These kinds of ad placements look similar to the ads you might see on a TV broadcast of a sports game.
Plans for 2025:
With these preliminary steps operating effectively, Clancy has decided to go all-in with the launch of a tool that connects brands with streamers on Twitch itself. This launch has two components: The Creator Profile, and a partnership with StreamElements. The Creator Profile is a quick showcase of the streamer’s personality, popularity, and content which brands can view at will. In a show of good faith, Twitch has also made the Creator Profile a downloadable infographic that streamers can use in off-platform discussions as well.
The second component is Twitch’s new partnership with companion app StreamElements, a service that provides overlays, tipping features and more to creators. StreamElements will essentially act as the go-between for brands and creators, managing these partnerships. As of today (March 11th), all of these features are available to both Partners and Affiliates.
Implications Moving Forward:
As mentioned in the Monetization section, Twitch is clearly positioning itself as an all-in-one platform that provides services previously offered by external sites/agencies. This makes a lot of business sense: Why let other companies profit from your userbase when you have all the expertise? Additionally, Twitch’s beta program of these tools has already connected them with 70 brands, and so partnerships have been developed and nurtured for some time.
However, there are many reasons why brands and streamers alike should be cautious of Twitch’s involvement in their partnerships. For starters, Twitch having a hand in the pot can bias their decisions over which brand-to-streamer partnerships are appropriate for connecting the right audiences. In Twitch’s view, more sponsorships = more revenue. Agencies, on the other hand, have an outside perspective and risk their reputation by crafting ill-fitting partnerships.
Even if we assume Twitch is a good actor in these scenarios though, there are still plenty of reasons to carry out sponsorship negotiations off of the platform. The live streaming space can be difficult for brands to navigate without proper guidance, and it’s hard for streamers to trust brands reaching out without a connection. Influencer marketing expertise and solid trust therefore remains as important as ever.
TL;DR: More sponsorship opportunities and better tools primarily benefit medium-large streamers who are big enough to justify sponsors, but not so big that they have teams operating sponsorships for them. These kinds of streamers should be careful accepting sponsors that are put in front of them by Twitch itself, and should seek a third-party opinion to decide if the partnership is the right fit for their content. Of course, the same goes for brands being put in touch with streamers through Twitch.
Twitch Boosts Discoverability with Clip Tools and Off-Platform Support
Accomplishments in 2024:
As the dominant player in the live-streaming arena, Twitch has previously deprioritized discoverability. But 2024 saw significant improvements to discoverability, helping out streamers of all sizes. As mentioned in the Collaboration section, the Stream Together tool promotes overlapping streamers’ audiences. However, the Discover and Clips feeds are more concrete ways for curious viewers to find content they might like. While this was a step in the right direction, users still criticized these discoverability features for their poor execution compared to other platforms, and the ads featured between clips while scrolling. Ultimately, Twitch Tags and Categories still seemed the best way to find new creators.
Plans for 2025:
Thankfully in 2025, Twitch is upping their game with serious improvements to discoverability. For starters, the Discovery and Clips feeds will be improved, and Twitch will be hosting more events like the Trick-or-Treat challenge. But the big change comes in a shift towards mobile and short-form friendly content. Vertical broadcasts are now enabled, allowing streamers to easily create content suited to mobile viewing. Twitch has finally realized the importance of short-form content as top-of-funnel media that gets viewers interested in committing to longer content like streams.
In that vein, Twitch has promised better tools for creating Clips. Streamers will now be able to enjoy smoother editing software which can even use AI to automatically detect highlights from streams, potentially saving hours of time scrubbing streams for moments worth clipping. Improving Clips capabilities has a two-fold benefit: Firstly, Twitch Clips can now better compete with similar short-form content on platforms like TikTok and Instagram (Reels). Secondly, streamers can still take these clips and post them on the aforementioned platforms, thus allowing them to leverage external platforms to reach new audiences. Hopefully these new tools will also allow for captions and video effects (as seen on competitor platforms).
Implications Moving Forward:
Twitch’s increased mobile support is fantastic, especially with mobile game popularity rising alongside mobile viewership. If Twitch pulls this off, not only will smaller streamers be able to grow their channels more easily, but Twitch might also be able to attract streamers/viewers from regions where mobile games/streams are the predominant form of live streaming interaction (e.g. South-east Asia). This part of Twitch still needs a lot more support though to compete with platforms well-versed in mobile viewership.
Regarding AI-filtered highlights on Clips, we should be cautious about the efficacy of this tool. Streamers currently using third-party AI highlight tools have noted their subpar performance in actually finding the best clips. While we haven’t seen Twitch’s proposed AI in action yet, the efficacy of this tool will determine its actual utility for streamers. Keep in mind that big streamers have mods, fans, and sometimes employees to scrub through footage and find highlights. Therefore, it’s really only small-to-medium streamers that will be depending on this tool.
TL;DR: Discoverability is being given a boost, but it’s a far lower priority for Twitch than other platforms that are eager to grow. Improving mobile viewing tools and allowing streamers to more easily share their content via short-form media is a step in the right direction, but smaller streamers should be aware that the onus is still on them to stand out.
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Clancy’s entire open letter puts a strong emphasis on improving streamer experience ahead of viewer experience, reasoning that if you have the best streamers, then the viewers will follow. But this logic seems to primarily extend to supporting big streamers with more sponsorship opportunities and new ways to create mega-collaborations. The few key improvements purportedly designed for smaller streamers are either driven by revenue-raising (e.g. open monetization), or discoverability that will mostly benefit streamers that already have followings on other short-form content platforms.
Collaboration could help this, but even Clancy himself stresses elsewhere that he sees collaboration through features like Drop Ins as being more about fun than discoverability. Additionally, there are concerns that programs like Creator Clubs foster an attitude of exclusivity that create an “in-group” and an “out-group”. Again, it makes sense that streamers bringing in the most viewers get the most support, but we merely point this out to stress that Twitch’s priority is supporting its breadwinners, not smaller streamers. This lies in contrast to other live-streaming platforms like Kick or BIGO LIVE that need to boost viewership and therefore actively promote smaller streamers.
Ultimately, Twitch’s plans for 2025 are particularly exciting for brands. Opening up the platform to more revenue raising with an internal marketplace and easier sponsorships is sure to create unique opportunities for influencer marketing activations. To find out more about how you can leverage Twitch’s new features to fuel your own campaigns, reach out to a Stream Hatchet consultant today:
