TheQuartering [6/16/2021]
Nothing wrong with ASMR, but in my opinion, Twitch is continuing to allow young men & boys to be targeted with sexualized content for money.
The popularity of hot tub streams was a controversial subject earlier in 2021, with streamers stripping down to their bikinis to get more eyes on their broadcasts. Many channels did experience significant growth in that period, too, including IndieFoxx, XoAeriel, and Amouranth to name a few.
Twitch’s Just Chatting section was created for streamers to move away from video games and dabble with IRL broadcasts. Though, it was taken over by jacuzzi streams throughout April and May, with some viewers suggesting the content was worthy of a ban.
Conversely, the platform decided to open up a new beaches and pools category on May 21. They said: “While we have guidelines about sexually suggestive content, being found to be sexy by others is not against our rules, and Twitch will not take enforcement action against women, or anyone on our service, for their perceived attractiveness.”
Many of the streamers that have jumped on the ASMR trend are also mixing it up with hot tub streams from time to time, though statistics in the last seven days do suggest there’s a much bigger shift at play here.
In the last seven days – at the time of writing – the ASMR category has racked up over 2.1 million hours watched, while the hot tub section lags behind at 1.8 million hours. This is a significant drop from the hot tub category compared to previous weeks.
A massive factor in this change will presumably be so many high-profile personalities jumping on the trend, such as Amouranth who has 3.1 million followers alone.
Just a month after the hot tub category was created, as Alinity previously predicted, the trend has fizzled out – and now seemingly replaced.
The ASMR category on Twitch has proven to be the next destination for many of the streamers that benefitted from the previous meta.
Now, they’re laying down while streaming in the famous TikTok leggings and “ear licking” their ASMR microphones. In some cases, a feature of the streams is to offer eye contact while licking the microphone for donations and subs.
In the case of Amouranth, she offers 30 seconds of licking for every subscriber and a sub-goal for outfit changes.