StreamElements has now released their latest streaming analytics report. This report, which examines streaming statistics throughout 2018, is entitled, “How IRL is Changing the Stream,” in reference to the rapid growth of IRL streaming. However, the report also reveals other fascinating trends. Most notably, 2018 marks the first year where the top 100 streamers fell behind the second tier of streamers for views. Meanwhile, Fortnite seems set on a downwards trend, albeit a slow one which has yet to displace it from its throne.

Streaming in 2018: YouTube Live Grows Significantly

The first aspect of streaming in 2018 which is examined in the new report is the growth of different streaming platforms. Both Twitch and YouTube Gaming saw drops in views early in 2018 before recovering through the year and peaking around October/November. All told, 9.36 billion hours of streaming was watched on Twitch over the course of 2018. Meanwhile, 2.31 billion hours were watched on YouTube Live and 167.96 million hours were watched on Mixer. All three platforms saw growth in 2018; 25% growth on Twitch, and a much more dramatic growth of 104% for YouTube Live. Mixer grew by the most; 179%. However, their viewing hours equal just 2% of the hours viewed on Twitch.

Streaming in 2018: Top 100 Streamers Losing Views to Second Tier of Streamers

One of the most interesting aspects of the new report is the revelation that the top 100 Streamers have lost the top spot for viewership. For the first time, the second tier of the top 1,000-101 streamers overtook the top 100; a trend which began in Q3 of 2018. Views for the top 100 streamers have seen a downwards trend ever since, although it hasn’t yet fallen below the third tier of the top 10,000-1,001 streamers. Overall, there was a 9% drop in views for the top 100 streamers in Q4. Meanwhile, the second tier of streamers gained a 20.4% increase in growth throughout the year, while the third tier grew by 43.4%.

Overall, the top 100 streamers have lost views, while lesser-known channels have been growing. However, the top channels still maintain better average viewing time. On average, viewers for those top 100 streamers watched for sessions of 44.5 minutes. The second tier of streamers averaged 34.5 minute viewing sessions, while the third tier averaged 27.4 minutes.

Streaming in 2018: Fortnite’s Downwards Trend Continues

After peaking in Q2 of 2018, Fortnite has been seeing a slow downwards trend in viewership. This was indicated by another report by StreamElements several months ago. However, while it may be in decline, it remains the indisputable most-watched game on Twitch. The game has over 1.3 billion hours watched in 2018, giving the game a massive lead over the second most watched game; League of Legends, which didn’t quite reach the 1 billion hours mark. However, while the game peaked at 399.5 million views in Q2, it has since dropped by 15% into Q4. This suggests that viewers could be starting to turn elsewhere. Indeed, it’s worth noting that the drop coincides with the release of several major titles, including Call of Duty: Black Ops 4, Red Dead Redemption 2, and so forth.

Streaming in 2018: IRL Streaming is Dominated by “Just Chatting” Streams

IRL streaming saw enormous growth in 2018, especially since it was split into its own section. Of this streaming category, 86.9% of all IRL streams were “Just Chatting,” streams; as opposed to ASMR, Travel & Outdoors, Food & Drink, and Sports & Fitness, none of which managed more than 4.9%. Overall, IRL streaming has proven so popular that it was the third most watched category on Twitch. Indeed, it beat out Dota 2, PUBG, CS:GO, and other titles for its spot. In 2017, this category was the 7th most watched category. Only Fortnite and League of Legends were watched more this year, however. In total, viewers watched 484 million hours of IRL streams in 2018!