Twitch’s new Bounty Board allows streamers to make money from promotional broadcasts

Twitch is looking to make it easier for streamers to access paid promotions with a new function called “Bounty Board.” The service allows streamers to find game and time-specific promotional deals, providing them with an additional source of revenue.

Twitch is looking to make it easier for streamers to access paid promotions with a new function called “Bounty Board.” The service allows streamers to find game and time-specific promotional deals, providing them with an additional source of revenue.

Live streaming is a billion dollar industry, according to a 2017 report from SuperData Research. With the continued growth of live streaming, the economic incentives for game developers and publishers to have their products advertised on sites like Twitch and YouTube has also grown.

Now, game developers and publishers will be able to put up an ad on Twitch’s Bounty Board, and let streamers apply to receive the game, as well as compensation, for streaming the game play. Once the promotional stream begins, the streamer will add a note on their broadcast notifying users that the stream is a paid promotion. At the moment Twitch is only allowing partnered streamers in the U.S. to use the service, but it will likely expand to other regions in coming months.

Promotional content on Twitch is not anything new. Game developers, PR firms, and influencer agencies are able to pay to have specific games listed higher up in Twitch’s directory, as well as featured on the home page of the site. They have also approached streamers directly in the past. The Bounty Board would see Twitch become the broker for any future such advertisements.

Whether or not Twitch will be taking a cut of any completed bounty remains unclear, however, with the streaming company saying that “since this is a beta test in a very limited run, it’s too early to comment on what a final program might look like,” a Twitch representative told Gamasutra.

Although the implementation of the Bounty Board is a major development in regards to generating additional revenue for streamers, they will be expected to follow a number of guidelines once accepting a “bounty.” Streamers are allowed to express “negative opinions” about the game they’re promoting, but engaging in “mean-spirited bashing” is prohibited. Additionally, streamers are required to save the streaming session on their profile, so Twitch can review the content to ensure that bounty was completed and lived up to its guidelines.

Incidentally, certain bounties will also feature viewership demands, which will result in a smaller payout if the streamer doesn’t get a specific amount of viewers.