Twitch has lost another high-profile streamer to YouTube, namely Ludwig, who explains he was simply offered a much better deal.
Despite usually being regarded as the go-to platform for streamers, Twitch has lost a lot of its most prolific talent lately. The likes of Valkyrae and TimtheTatman exclusively stream on YouTube nowadays and now they’re being joined by Ludwig Ahgren.
Usually known simply known as Ludwig, his departure from Twitch is perhaps the biggest blow to the platform yet, as Ludwig holds the honour of being the most subscribed Twitch streamer ever. He took the title from Ninja back in April of this year thanks to streaming for 31 days straight.
Given his success on Twitch, Ludwig’s decision to switch over to YouTube may be surprising to some but the streamer has provided a surprisingly curt explanation. In a video titled ‘Why I Left Twitch’, he says that YouTube simply offered him a much better deal.
I’m excited to announce @LudwigAhgren will now be streaming exclusively on @YouTubeGaming.
Our focus is building a world class VOD, short form, and live platform.
And I have to reiterate; we still aren’t done yet! Welcome to the family, Ludwig! pic.twitter.com/pSfCNoLwwM— Ryan Wyatt (fwiz.eth) (@Fwiz) November 29, 2021
Initially, YouTube offered more money than Twitch was paying him for the same number of hours. But Ludwig still wasn’t convinced, prompting YouTube to propose an even better deal, which included a less restrictive streaming schedule.
When Ludwig told Twitch that he would be leaving the platform for YouTube, the response was much colder, as it didn’t even provide its own counteroffer, bluntly wishing him the best.
It’s this coldness that pushed Ludwig to leave, saying that, ‘I’ve never felt particularly loved by Twitch. I love Twitch, but it hasn’t been a two-way street.’ He specifically points to his 31-day subathon, saying that Twitch never reached out to him afterwards.
The general response seems to be mostly positive, with fellow YouTube streamers Valkyrae and TimtheTatman congratulating and welcoming him to the fold.
WELCOME TO YOUTUBEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEE ððððððððððððð
— raeâï¸ (@Valkyrae) November 29, 2021
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It remains to be seen what sort of impact his departure will have on Twitch. At the very least, it could prompt other streamers to seek new deals with YouTube or encourage newcomers to start up on YouTube and not even bother with Twitch.
The platform, or more specifically platform holder Amazon, is also facing a lawsuit filed by former Twitch streamer Dr. Disrespect. He was banned for life from Twitch last year for still unexplained reasons and has since set himself up on YouTube.
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