Twitch is losing another major streamer: Jack “CouRage” Dunlop — one of the most popular Fortnite streamers on the site with over 2 million followers — has announced he’ll now exclusively stream on YouTube Live. Dunlop’s first YouTube stream will start tomorrow on November 5th.
As has become the tradition with big streaming platform changes, Dunlop announced the move in an elaborate video featuring fellow 100 Thieves members Matt “Nadeshot” Haag and Rachel “Valkyrae” Hofstetter that also makes it clear that Dunlop will still be saying with the e-sports organization.
The Next Chapter…
— Jack “CouRage” Dunlop (@CouRageJD) November 4, 2019
CouRage x YouTubehttps://t.co/StYfTG6UEE pic.twitter.com/CyYB6gcnHc
“I’m very excited to continue expanding my relationship with my YouTube audience, as well as leverage the platform for new collabs and experiences,” commented Dunlop in a press release. “This deal with YouTube allows me to create more content and engage with my fans in real time. I am very fortunate to do what I do on a daily basis and welcome my fans to join me on the next phase of my journey.”
Dunlop’s switch to YouTube marks the latest high-profile departure of top talent on the popular streaming site. In the past few weeks, Twitch has also seen Tyler “Ninja” Blevins, Michael “Shroud” Grzesiek, and Cory “King Gothalion” Michael all move over to Microsoft’s Mixer platform.
YouTube isn’t as big of a force when it comes to live-streaming as other sites like Mixer are (to say nothing of Twitch), but it has recently been building up a base of exclusive streaming. Along with Dunlop, YouTube Gaming also recently announced that Fortnite streamer Lachlan Power would be exclusively live-streaming on the platform.
YouTube has benefitted greatly from hosting replay content from other streaming sites like Twitch, meaning that it hasn’t had to focus as much in the past on attracting content creators exclusively to the platform. That strategy appears to be changing with the recruitment of names like Dunlop and Lachlan, though, indicating that YouTube is looking to try to make its way as a live-streaming site again.
Souce: The Verge, Engadget