The Amazon owned streaming site, Twitch, today announced a multi-year partnership with Disney Digital Network to bring a number of top creators to its platform. The company also revealed new software for all creators that will allow them to broadcast pre-recorded content to their channels.
Disney Digital Network is a multi-channel network, which was launched last year, to roll up all of the network’s ‘digital-first’ content under one roof, including the Disney acquisition, Maker Studios. According to the network’s site:
“Disney Digital Network creates high quality, digital-first stories and delivers them to Millennial and Gen Z audiences through the platforms and influencers they know best.”
“The network of Maker creators offers a highly-curated and hand-selected set of the top video and social media influencers. Disney is now able to leverage the creators’ unique voices and content across these editorial brands and to create original programming around the creators. Advertisers can leverage the authentic voices and audiences each creator brings, both tied to and separate from the Disney brand.”
Four of the Disney Digital Network’s largest personalities, Jacksepticeye, LuzuGames, Markiplier, and Strawburry17, will establish their own channels on Twitch, where they’ll broadcast live and create exclusive video-on-demand content.
The partnership could bring an increased number of viewers to Twitch, especially due to these particular creators already having large online followings.
“We’re always looking to create opportunities for our Disney Digital Network digital talent to bring their stories and content to more fans in new ways,” said Andrew Sugerman, EVP of Publishing and Digital Media, Disney Consumer Products and Interactive Media, in a statement. “Partnering with Twitch gives our biggest creators access to the platform’s tools, expertise and community to directly engage with and build their audiences.”
This move is a bit of a shake-up to YouTube’s partner program, which received some criticism for it’s recent changes, now requiring a higher bar for entry. Instead of 10,000 total views, channels now need 1,000 subscribers and 4,000 hours of watch time over the past 12 months.
Several smaller content creators feel that these changes are punishing them for the actions of some bigger content creators.
With this Disney partnership, Twitch can now potentially capitalize on the current angst against YouTube, bringing small creators to its site (like me! Though I’m already streaming content there via the AttackOnGeek channel).
VIDEO PRODUCER
Twitch is also launching a new suite of tools for video creators who want to upload videos instead of only live streaming their content. The platform originally differentiated itself by being a platform for live streams, not the professionally edited videos you’d find elsewhere, like on YouTube.
To allow for this, Twitch has a new software called Video Producer, which will help creators upload post-production videos via a suite of tools to make pre-recorded content more interesting.
This includes support for ‘Premieres’, a new feature that was teased at last year’s TwitchCon, which allows creators to schedule the very first viewing of one of their videos. They can create a shareable landing page for their Premiere and insert a countdown timer before it launches to attract audiences.
Video Producer is also launching with support for scheduling re-runs, which lets creators re-show a video so fans can watch again and chat.
As a variety of video types will now be available across many creators’ channels, Twitch is also introducing a new channel status labels, ‘Live,’ ‘Premiere’ and ‘Rerun.’
These awesome new tools will be available from today via Twitch creators’ channel dashboard.