Mixer is Being Shut Down; Microsoft to Partner With Facebook Gaming, Ninja & Others Free to Return to Twitch

Today Microsoft announced that it will be shutting down Mixer, its livestreaming service, on July 22. This announcement is coupled with another: that Microsoft will be partnering with Facebook Gaming. Starting today, all partners and streamers will be transferred to Facebook Gaming’s livestreaming service.

This is a surprising announcement to anyone that has paid attention to the moves Microsoft has made over the last 12 months to try and make their service more competitive with Twitch. Microsoft invested what is believed to be a healthy chunk of capital to exclusively sign some of gaming’s most popular streamers such as Ninja.

It seems apparent that these moves didn’t move the needle as much as Microsoft was hoping; or at all to any meaningful degree considered how quickly Microsoft has pulled the plug on the idea. MattPat of The Game Theorists not too long ago posted two videos (Part 1, Part 2) that broke down how difficult it was going to be for Microsoft to make these deals work favorably for them.

Microsoft has the money to go for something like this so they don’t have to partner with another entity like Facebook, but clearly it didn’t work out.

According to The Verge, Nothing is now stopping Ninja, or any other streamer or partner from going to back to Twitch, or another new platform such as YouTube, to livestream.

The Verge article also mentions that the move to partner with Facebook Gaming is highly motivated by Project xCloud. The idea is that xCloud will work similarly to Google’s vision with Stadia, where viewers will be able to “click and immediately play games that people are streaming” using xCloud.

It seems as evident that getting xCloud off and running right away is important enough to Microsoft that they are willing to shut Mixer down and latch onto something more popular in order to give them a more visible platform to promote the service.

As for those big contracts that were doled out to Ninja and others? It’s unconfirmed right now whether they will receive the full payout, but rumors are swirling that they did indeed get all of the money. The memes are definitely swirling on Twitter right now about that news; that for sure we can confirm.

What’s easy to forget about here, while perusing all the Mixer memes, is that a lot of people’s livelihoods as either livestreamers or employees of Microsoft that were tied to Mixer’s survival and health. Even if there will be a transition plan in place for them to Facebook Gaming if they want it, the rug being pulled out from under them today has got to hurt.

You. can check out the transition details below via Mixer:

• Mixer Partners will be granted partner status with Facebook Gaming, and the platform will honor and match all existing Partner agreements as closely as possible. Mixer Partners will receive an update from Mixer today on how to kickoff the sign-up process.
• Streamers participating in Mixer’s open monetization program will be granted eligibility for the Facebook Gaming Level Up Program, where you can continue to grow and monetize your streams. Facebook Gaming will also fast-track onboarding for eligible streamers.
• We encourage all Mixer viewers to spend their remaining Embers and Sparks to help support your favorite Mixer Partners and streamers. Mixer Partners will receive double-payment for all of their earnings in the month of June – so your support of Embers, Sparks and channel subscriptions for Mixer Partners will go even further during the rest of this month. 
• Viewers with outstanding Ember balances, channel subscriptions or Mixer Pro subscriptions will receive Xbox Gift Card credit as a thank you for your engagement on the platform. Details on what you can expect can be found at this FAQ. 
• The Mixer service will continue to run through July 22, 2020. After that, Mixer.com will redirect to fb.gg, Facebook’s desktop home for gaming video, Mixer broadcasting on Xbox One will be temporarily disabled and the Mixer apps will notify or redirect viewers to continue watching their favorite streamers at Facebook Gaming.