Live streaming sees 12% growth in 2024, points to market shifts

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Live streaming continues to gain traction, according to Stream Hatchet’s 2024 “Live Streaming Trends Report,” which noted a 12% increase in hours watched over the previous year, totaling 32.5 billion hours.
The report, released by Stream Hatchet, points to a resurgent live-streaming industry approaching viewership levels last seen during the height of the COVID-19 pandemic.
The data shows a shift toward a more diversified streaming platform economy.
While Twitch remains the dominant player with 61% of the market share, other platforms are making notable inroads. YouTube Gaming holds 22.9% of the market, and Kick has emerged as a contender with a 5.7% share, surpassing Facebook and several Korean platforms.
In South Korea, the report notes that Twitch’s shutdown led to the rise of local alternatives like SOOP Korea and Chzzk, indicating a regional adaptation to global platform changes. A similar pattern is observed in the United States, where a brief TikTok shutdown sparked conversations about data privacy and ownership, suggesting potential shifts in the platform landscape for 2025.
Viewer engagement has also been bolstered by subscription-based models, with Twitch alone seeing 16 million monthly subscription purchases. This trend reflects growing loyalty within the creator economy, as viewers increasingly support individual streamers through paid subscriptions and participation in subathons. These developments could signal a broader move away from traditional sponsorships toward loyalty-based monetization strategies, where creators offer exclusive content and tiered perks to their audiences.
Co-streaming, particularly in esports, also saw substantial growth. Nearly half of all esports viewership in 2024—1.3 billion hours—came from co-streaming channels, reflecting an industry shift as publishers become more open to collaborations with individual streamers.
As the live streaming sector expands, the emergence of new regional platforms and the growing popularity of alternative monetization models may continue to reshape the digital landscape in the coming year.
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Facebook, live stream, live streaming, TikTok, Twitch
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Featured, Market Research Reports & Industry Analysis, Streaming