Every now and then, there comes that someone or something that seemingly flips everyone and everything on its head, creating lots of change and newsworthy moments. Kick has been that recent newcomer to the streaming industry, promising to fill the gaps that have left lots of streamers feeling frustrated with the likes of Twitch and YouTube.
For a while now, some of the streamers on these established platforms have felt disgruntled and unhappy due to a mixture of unclear policies, double standards on bans and treatment of genres, and revenue-sharing models. Because of these, many content creators have moved to Twitch & YouTube’s newest rival, giving Kick a great starting base.
Of course, as with all things new and shiny, there have been many to bring up the negative sides of the green platforms workings, but there is no doubt that Kick has been a harbinger of change in content creation. That it promises favorable policies, like a 95-5 revenue split, 100% split on Kicks to the streamer (Kick's internal currency, analog of Twitch Bits), same-day payouts, and a lenient view on gambling streams has helped the site attract both big and small broadcasters despite still being in its beta stage.
To get a closer look into Kick's workings, Streams Charts reached out to the site to get answers straight from the horse's mouth, and had a chance to chat with Ed Craven. Some might wonder: who Ed Craven is? Well, he's not only Kick co-founder but also the owner of the crypto-gambling casino Stake which made him one of the youngest billionaires in Australia at the age of 27. And he has very serious plans for Kick.
Straight off the bat, Craven discussed Kick's far less restrictive streaming policies than Twitch enticing many streamers. Talking about his company's content moderation process and how it varies from the latter, Ed said:
"Our lens is 'intent,' and we talk with creators to find out if we missed a joke or trend. The two staunch rules we have for banning are: 'no pornography' and 'no hate speech.' Those are the two items that will usher you right off the platform. I can’t speak too much on Twitch’s methods other than what I see on Twitter, but at Kick, we are reformative and work with the creators to make better decisions. Also, banning most creators for a week or more means they may miss rent or bills, so we feel we can get the same message across via dialogues."
Speaking of clarifying rumors, many feel Kick's non-gaming categories are currently more popular than its gaming ones. Some people have even described the site as 'the platform where former Twitch gambling stars go.' Ed agreed that this was perhaps a little true two to three months ago, but today, that narrative is being rewritten:
“I agree with your sentiment about the perception that only gambling stars go to Kick, but that was 2-3 months ago. Today, that narrative is being rewritten by the streamers who come and participate. Kick now is the place where you come to rekindle your love for streaming; where you can change your life and actually financially support yourself if you work for it.”
There's been a significant growth in the number of streaming services today, meaning there is a chance they share the same features. However, Kick aims to be different from its rivals, especially when it comes to revenue sharing:
"The nastiest "trick" was the unfair splits to the creator, and Kick did something about that. 95% of all subs go to the creator on Kick, which is the biggest split in the industry. By letting creators keep what they earn, they, in turn, can produce better content and take more time off to think/breathe. So if you treat the talent right, there’s no need for lateral mechanics or features that only exist to distract the creator from unfair splits."
Kick also recently debuted its mobile app, which ended up being a roaring success; so much so that the overall watch time on the platform jumped 2.5 times. However, that is not enough, with Ed disclosing that their content creator incentive program 'will blow the doors off of the growth we saw from the mobile app.'
He also talked about the problem where every tab open with the same stream adds a new viewer to the broadcast, saying Kick is working on it. The issue requires rebuilding some infrastructure, which is why it's taking a little longer to roll out.
One of the biggest issues that Kick has faced is allegations that it is not very friendly to aspiring streamers, with many feeling it is best suited to well-known broadcasters who already have a large audience. However, Ed moved swiftly to discard any such notions, saying that the company has heard quite the opposite. He noted:
"We’ve heard large creators encourage smaller creators to come to Kick for discoverability. There’s a massive land grab going on with mid-sized creators. If you play StarDew, Trackmania, Hades, or Genshin Impact, there’s a massive opportunity to own the audience here at Kick. Conversely, just as much as large creators are telling small creators to come to Kick, we at Kick are seeing large creators rediscover themselves here. I’ve seen large creators blown away by the Kick community."
Kick began life with Trainwreckstv joining as a non-owner advisor and non-exclusive streamer before becoming its co-founder. Soon after, massive names like Adin Ross and WestCOL moved in, with the site nowhere near done when it comes to bringing in the best content creators:
"We’re already seeing talented streamers cross over and enjoy what Kick has to offer, like bbjess and her amazing set-up and singing. Then there's Sethdrums, who comes to the table with scintillating energy and captures the spirit of Kick.com. I could name hundreds more from Tik Tok, YouTube, and Facebook. Everyone is coming to Kick to rediscover themselves."
There was also exciting news on the expansion front, with Kick currently clearly focused on North American viewers. However, with the French and Spanish sectors having taken off, the platform will eventually be in all markets, including popular ones like Brazil, Ukraine, and Russia.
Ending on a light note, the Australian billionaire had a unique take when asked what Kick's mascot would look like if it had one.
"It would be a variation of The Incredible Hulk meets Robert Downey Jr’s Sherlock Holmes. Kick is smashing into the space with incredible guile and style," he signed off.
