Microsoft is shutting down its Mixer streaming platform next month. It plans to move existing users over to Facebook Gaming in a deal that is also expected to involve xCloud on Facebook.
Mixer is Microsoft’s Twitch and YouTube competitor. But those larger streaming players – which are owned by Amazon and Google, respectively – dwarf Mixer in total users. In fact, Twitch just added 3.5 million new streamers since January, which represents 87 percent growth.
“We started pretty far behind, in terms of where Mixer’s monthly active viewers were compared to some of the big players out there,” Microsoft’s Phil Spencer said in an interview.
Here’s more from The Verge:
Microsoft is partnering with Facebook to transition existing Mixer viewers and streamers over to Facebook Gaming in the coming weeks. On July 22nd, all Mixer sites and apps will automatically redirect to Facebook Gaming. Existing Mixer Partners will be granted partner status with Facebook Gaming, and any streamers using the Mixer monetization program will be granted eligibility for Facebook’s Level Up program. Mixer viewers with outstanding Ember balances, channel subscriptions, or Mixer Pro subscriptions will receive Xbox gift card credit.
Microsoft’s choice to partner with Facebook is clearly a strategic one that’s also related to broadening the appeal of its upcoming xCloud game streaming service and its overall gaming efforts. Microsoft will work closely with Facebook to bring xCloud to Facebook Gaming, allowing viewers to click and immediately play games that people are streaming. It’s a vision that’s very similar to Google’s ambitions with Stadia, but Mixer has lacked the scale and viewership to truly deliver this more broadly. Microsoft recruited exclusive streamers like Ninja and Shroud with big deals, but they haven’t been enough to get more people using the service over rivals. Ninja, Shroud, and other top streamers are now free to rejoin Twitch or stream on Facebook Gaming.
