Twitch VS Mixer, Atari Hotels and Lawsuits

Twitch and Mixer streaming wars are spending the big bucks

A new report reveals the details of how much Twitch and Mixer are willing to spend to secure the world’s top video game streamers. Twitch which is owned by Amazon and Mixer backed by Microsoft are fighting for the top spot as the dominant streaming site. Last year Ninja also known as Tyler Blevins left Twitch for Mixer leaving behind 14 million followers which equates to over $A44 million. Soon after that Shroud was bought out of Twitch for the Mixer service with his site having the value of $A19 million. Twitch has over 15 million daily users with an estimated worth of a little under $A6 billion. Video game content generated close to $10 billion in revenue in 2019. Let’s see what this streaming war generates throughout 2020.

Atari themed hotels are coming to US cities

After Atari’s downfall in the 80’s they now hope to reinvigorate their company by entering the hospitality industry. Atari signed a contract that gives the license of it’s name and branding to a real estate developer which will build 8 hotels across the US. Firstly opening in Phoenix later in the year. Other cities to be graced with the new hotels are Austin, Chicago, Denver, Las Vegas, San Francisco, San Jose and Seattle. The hotels will feature Esports studios there is currently little information about the details however they will also have “Atari gaming playgrounds” which may contain lounges for pro players. The hotels are said to contain regular hotel facilities such as a pools, gyms, restaurants, bars, bakeries and movie theatres. Atari has received a $600,000 advance for licensing the brand hopefully the hotels are a success so more hotels can be built in the long run.

Amro Elansari a Runescape streamer sued developer Jagex after the company muted him in game last year

In a lengthy lawsuit Elansari said he’d spent over 2,000 hours in the game and claimed that Jagex muting him violated his free speech and human rights. U.S. Eastern District Judge Mark Kearney dismissed the case saying that “these allegations cannot state a plausible constitutional claim, the First Amendment and its constitutional free speech guarantees restrict government actors, not private entities.” As it turns out being muted in a video game doesn’t violate your civil rights in the U.S. The Eastern District Court has had 10 suits filed by Elansari in the last 18 months one of those suits claims that he was scammed by Tinder. There is now talk about investigating what goes on in online platforms and the mini governments they form. Where is the line drawn when it comes to free speech in a virtual space for game players?