This story was originally published on Passionfruit.
Since its launch in 2011, Twitch has become a lucrative asset in the creator economy, with creators making millions after becoming household names on the live stream platform.
However, the streaming service has come under fire after announcing a number of divisive “sponsorship experiments” which, in a Twitter thread, the organization described as “new ways for brands to fuel streamer earnings.”
The monetization experiments—which Twitch says will be ongoing throughout the month of April—are composed of four main types: Streamer-read Ads, Sponsored Gift Subs, Sub Codes, and Sponsored Sub Discounts.
Twitch’s website says these changes will make sponsorships more “lucrative” for creators and “scalable” on its platform. But according to some of Twitch’s most prominent streamers, these proposed changes—especially the Sponsored Sub Discounts—are a lot more controversial than they might appear to be at first glance.
