One of the most popular social media platforms to come along in the last few years has been Twitch. Based in the United States, Twitch is a live video streaming platform that mostly focuses on video games and gamers but can be used to live stream just about anything. Typically, a gamer will stream themselves as they play and provide commentary to anyone who deigns to watch them. The platform is free to use but can be monetized by the streamer by selling subscriptions; some make quite a bit of money. (Indeed, some Twitchers make a ridiculous amount of money.) Twitch has an affiliate program, but it's quite different from most in that you don't sell products but instead sell subscriptions to your Twitch channel. (You also earn income via advertisements and "Twitch Bits," the virtual cash used on the platform. Twitch also has a Partner program similar to their affiliate but offers several perks above and beyond the affiliate. Read on if you're interested in becoming a Twitch affiliate or partner. We have the information about both below to help you decide whether it's worth your time and effort.
It's faster to become a Twitch affiliate than a Twitch partner. In fact, you need to become an affiliate first, and once you are, there are certain thresholds you will need to meet to apply for the Twitch Partner program.
Getting started means doing the same thing you would do for any affiliate program: go to the Twitch webpage and fill in their affiliate application form. You will need to perform a few steps and provide Twitch with several pieces of information. The steps include:
1. Give Twitch general info about yourself, including a username, password, phone number, date of birth, and email. (You can use either your email or a phone number.)
2. Agree to the Twitch affiliate program terms and digitally sign the agreement.
3. Give your tax information to Amazon. (Twitch is an Amazon subsidiary.) There are two things, including the Royalty tax info and Service Tax Interviews (TIMS).
4. Complete a form from Tipalti (an accounting company) so that they can send you your commission payments.
Getting approved as a Twitch affiliate is different than other affiliate programs. You will get accepted to the program immediately but not be an affiliate until they see that you meet their criteria. As of this writing, the criteria for affiliates (which Twitch says can change as they continue to develop the platform) were as follows:
• You must have at least 500 minutes (8.3 hours) of broadcast time in the last month. That means 500 minutes that you were live, online, and streaming your content.
• You must have created at least 7 unique streaming broadcasts during that same time.
• At that same time, you must have at least 3 simultaneous viewers.
• You must have at least 50 followers on your channel.
Content is the key to getting accepted as an affiliate, but in this case, it's video streaming content. As with all content, it needs to be engaging and, in the case of Twitch, entertaining, at least to a degree. Frankly, what some viewers find "entertaining" on Twitch might not seem all that entertaining, but viewers are a fickle bunch. Remember, this is a platform built on people playing video games while others watch them play video games.
Once you've set everything up and been accepted to start with Twitch, it takes a few weeks before your channel becomes eligible. At that point, Twitch will send you an invitation to become a Twitch affiliate.
It's with noting that you can't be a Twitch affiliate and a Twitch partner simultaneously; it's either one or the other. However, since the Twitch Partner program has everything the affiliate program has and adds extra benefits, it's not a problem for most Twitch affiliates to become Twitch partners.
The numbers and requirements we referenced above are the minima for becoming a Twitch affiliate. If you have more, it's certainly a good thing, especially if you want to become a Twitch Partner. To become a Twitch Partner, you need everything above. The additional requirements for becoming a Twitch Partner include the following:
• 1,500 minutes (25 hours) of broadcast time in total. (An entire day's worth of content!)
• 12 unique streams
• An average of 75 viewers on each stream.
Once you reach all these thresholds, you can apply to become a Twitch partner, but it's not guaranteed. Twitch will evaluate your channel and, if they believe you are producing good content, will approve you. If not, they might not, so creating scintillating, engaging, entertaining content is critical.
The main product, if you will, that you can promote when you're a Twitch affiliate is subscriptions to your channel. Anyone who clicks your link to become a Twitch subscriber will pay Twitch, and, in turn, Twitch will pay you a commission.
That being said, most Twitch Affiliates and partners don't make their money via subscriptions but, instead, from advertisements and from being an affiliate on other channels and promoting those channels on their Twitch account.
Let's say, for example, that you've been accepted as either a Twitch Affiliate or a Partner. Once you are, you can start placing affiliate links on your Twitch channel and promoting them to your subscribers. For example, you could become an affiliate for various 3rd-party affiliate networks representing several (or hundreds) brands. The more subscribers you have, the more likely they will click on one of your affiliate links and make a purchase.
In other words, once you're a Twitch Affiliate or Partner, you can start promoting a massive variety of products and services via other affiliate programs. By the way, if you're a complete newbie, this is known as "monetizing" your channel, meaning you create a stream of income (money) using the content you're creating on Twitch.
The Twitch commission structure for affiliates and partners is the same. Both depend on your number of followers (i.e., subscribers). The first commission tier starts at 50% and, as your follower list grows, goes to 60% and then to 70%
The default subscription plan on Twitch costs $4.99 per month. They also have two "All Paid Tiers" subscriptions that cost either $9.99 per month (Tier 2) or $24.99 per month (Tier 3). (The different tiers give your subscribers access to different perks on your channel, such as seeing new content first, getting custom emojis, etc.
So, let's say you're a new Twitch affiliate and sell only monthly subscription plans. Since they are $4.99, you would get 50%, which is $2.50 (give or take a few pennies). If you were a more advanced Twitch affiliate or a Twitch partner, you could earn $5.50 for each subscriber who pays the $9.99 "All Pad Tiers" subscription or $12.50 for each $24.99 "All Paid Tiers" subscription. (Or more, depending on the number of subscribers you have.)
Remember that these numbers are only for Twitch subscriptions. Once you're an approved affiliate or partner and start promoting other affiliate programs, you can start earning more, but these aren't directly connected to your Twitch account.
This is where things get interesting and a little confusing. Here are some raw numbers only using the commission you would make from new subscribers.
• Twitch Basic Subscription ($4.99) x 50% Commission = $2.50 profit per sale.
• 400 Subscribers x $$2.50 per sale = $1000.00
• Twitch Tier 2 Subscription ($9.99) x 50% Commission = $5.50 profit per sale.
• 182 Subscribers x $5.50 per sale = $1001.00
• Twitch Tier 3 Subscription ($24.99) x 50% Commission = $12.50 profit per sale.
• 80 Subscribers x $$12.50 per sale = $1000.00
If you were more advanced on Twitch with more subscribers and followers, you could earn 60% or 70% commissions, which would get you to $1000 per month much faster. Plus, once well-established, you could join other affiliate programs and start promoting them through Twitch to make even more money (although that's not considered Twitch commission, per se.)
• If you create awesome content, you can earn a lot of income
• Twitch is currently the most popular streaming platform.
• If you're a gamer, you can promote yourself on Twitch.
• Many features are built-in to support you and help you monetize, like in-stream monetization.
• As you get more subs, your opportunity to earn increases.
• Twitch takes a percentage of your earnings.
• Your Twitch content goes through a period of exclusivity and can't be shared n other platforms.
• You must have at least 40 subscribers to start earning income.
• No dedicated support for affiliates.
There are more and more streaming platforms opening as we speak, and some of them might be a better opportunity to make commissions. They include:
• YouTube Gaming
• Facebook Gaming
• Epic Games
• Buff.bet
• Periscope
• StreamYard
• Ustream
• DLive
• YouNow
Twitch is the top streaming platform right now and very popular among gamers and many others who create streaming content. Many streamers are making thousands and even millions of dollars via Twitch and their Affiliate and partner programs, but excellent content is needed to earn well on the platform. One thing to remember is that once you're a Twitch affiliate, signing up for other affiliate programs is a must if you want to increase your earnings substantially.