YouTube gained 373% more streamers in 2017 - but Twitch still dominates
Leading streaming platform home to 800,000 streamers in Q4, and you'll never guess what the most streamed game was
YouTube more than quadrupled the number of active livestreamers using its video platform last year as it continues to catch up with Twitch.
A new report from Streamlabs, which provides tools for channel hosts and aids monetisation, reveals that YouTube attracted 373% more monthly active streamers over the course of the year.
However, Twitch also enjoyed significant growth, nearly tripling its streamer count with a year-on-year rise of 197%.
Looking at the three months ended December 31st, 2017, YouTube was host to more than 293,000 active streamers while Twitch was home to over 814,000. Both were up 10% over the previous quarter.
Streamlabs also noted growth on Facebook and Microsoft's Mixer, up by 62% and 58% over the quarter respectively. But these platforms still have some way to go if they hope to catch up to Twitch and YouTube; Facebook had 27,500 active streamers during the three-month period, while Mixer has 15,800.
It will come as absolutely no surprise that PlayerUnknown's Battlegrounds was the most streamed game, racking up more than 4.2 million hours over the course of three months and securing the No.1 spot on Twitch.
The second most popular game, League of Legends, was one million behind at 3.2 million (technically 999,695 behind), while Epic Games' Fortnite was third with 2.8 million hours streamed - no doubt driven by the PUBG-rivalling Battle Royale mode.
Streamlabs also reports it processed over $100 million in tips for streamers over the course of the year - 25% more than in 2016. The fourth quarter was the most lucrative when it came to donations, with two million pledges totalling $26 million.