Game Bits: A Boycott of Twitch, Another Acquisition Of A Game Developer
Twitch Streamers Participate In A One-Day Boycott of Twitch
Streamers participated in the #ADayOffTwitch protest, demanding protection against hate raids.
Twitch tracking site Sully Gnome reported 57 million viewer hours watched on September 1, 2021. On Wednesdays in the previous month, 61–65 million hours were watched, a decline between 7% and 12%.
Gamesight Analytics, however, reported a 16% drop in hours viewed on Twitch week over week.
According to the analytics firm, the number of channels that streamed recently fell 7% week over week to 834,000.
The Twitch hours for 9/1 were down 7–14% compared to the previous four Wednesdays, so it’s hard to tell if streamers were taking the day off or if it was just a slower day,” said StreamElements founder Doron Nir.
Some questioned whether a protest would be effective, but the larger conversation it generated from the press and on social media indicates that it was [efficient].”
A Twitch report posted in March revealed that only 15% of user complaints resulted in enforcement actions.
In addition, it showed that only 2% of harassment and hateful conduct reports led to action.
The media ran an extensive report last year in which current and former employees said there was a culture of indifference to inappropriate, unsafe, and abusive behavior at the company.
Spanish Game Developer Acquired by Publisher Thunderful Games
Publisher Thunderful Games announced recently that it has acquired Spanish game developer Stage Clear Studios.
The company will pay €600,000 ($712,000) in cash up front and €400,000 ($474,643) in shares.
Additionally, earnouts of up to €1.5 million ($1.7 million) are to follow if Stage Clear Studios’ meets agreed-upon p
Thunderful Games recently announced that it had acquired Spanish game developer Stage Clear Studios.
It will pay €600,000 ($712,000) in cash and €400,000 ($474,643) in shares.
Additionally, Stage Clear Studios will earn up to €1.5 million ($1.7 million) if its performance goals are met by June 30, 2025.
Thunderful’s chief strategy and investment officer Agostino Simonetta said, “This deal strengthens our international position, broadens our business network towards more development studios, and creates synergies within our publishing operations.”
The Nordics, the UK, and Germany will remain closely linked through these new colleagues in Madrid.”
Founded in 2012, Stage Clear Studios co-develops games like The Coma: Recut, Cloudpunk, and Yesterday Origins for consoles, PCs, and mobile devices. Additionally, the company publishes titles across multiple platforms.
Thunderful Games acquired a number of game developers in the last year, including Station Interactive AB, To The Sky, and Headup.
