How Much Money Did Mixer Give Ninja

The world of live streamers is one that's seemingly been very niche and not analyzed nearly enough in the mainstream. Tyler Blevins (aka Ninja) is one of the most popular video game live streamers in the history of the concept, and he still is. After making a name for himself on Twitch, he soon learned about a new business maneuver currently gobbling up the old names.

Twitch has been around for nine years now as a subsidiary of Amazon. From the beginning, they invented a unique concept where users would be able to live-stream themselves playing video games, among other shows. The service burgeoned immediately with millions of viewers, becoming one of the most visited sites in the world.

Now they face some challenges as their biggest star, Ninja, vacates to Mixer for some big paychecks.

Ninja arguably made Twitch what it is

Tyler "Ninja" Blevins | Ethan Miller/Getty Images

When Tyler Blevins/Ninja started streaming his video game plays on Twitch, he became a superstar within a short time. This increased further when he started playing Fortnite, one of the most popular video games in the world.

His skills have been unmatched, leading to an obsessive group of followers who tuned in daily on Twitch to watch. A couple of years ago, he reached a high of 2 million followers, almost singlehandedly keeping Twitch a profitable company.

Of course, Ninja wasn't the only top gaming streamer there. Many others were gaining thousands if not millions of viewers every day. It proved more people like to watch others play video games than play them themselves. Unless it was mostly to steal any skill tips while watching.

Eventually, it got to the point where Fortnite created a skin based on Blevins' image as a personal tribute.

One thing for sure is Twitch seemed to become a little complacent with all the money they were raking in.

Mixer wooed Ninja away — and many other Twitch stars

A new business practice is underway now Twitch apparently didn't see coming. If it's a dog eat world type of scenario, it's certainly nothing new in leaping ahead of corporate competition.

When Microsoft's Mixer started as an alternative to Twitch, latter thought any competition wouldn't stand a chance. Little did they know Mixer had some big capital spend available to lure Twitch stars over to former's platform.

And so they did by offering Ninja somewhere between $20-30 million to stream his gaming there. Who could pass up an offer like that, especially since Twitch was profiting far too much off Ninja's name?

With that, Blevins is now very wealthy simply by streaming himself playing Fortnite all day. Talk about the American Dream still being extant, even if he's been doing other things to make him a worthy notable.

What will happen to Twitch now?

Reports are Mixer managed to convince other Twitch gamers to make the transition with Ninja. A good number have ditched Twitch as a result, leaving the company in a possibly perilous business situation.

Some might say it's odd they didn't see this coming considering Microsoft still has a lot of money to spend to stay competitive. Being complacent is a big problem in business, though, and perhaps Twitch learned its lesson.

Not that they couldn't possibly attract new stars doing the same thing. With gaming being almost as prevalent as becoming a lawyer, there's a lot of talent they'll likely recruit to keep themselves going. In fact, they've locked some contracts with several top gaming streamers already.

As for Blevins, he's been in the spotlight elsewhere (like The Masked Singer) and donates often to various charitable causes. He's set a new precedent in what people are willing to watch. Maybe the real streaming war winner comes in watching others play video games where outcomes don't need scripts to stay interesting.