ReportStream Hatchet
Live Streaming Trend Report: Q2 2025
1 Apr 202524 pages~41 min full read
Live-streaming consumption reached over nine billion hours in Q2 2025, a five percent year-over-year increase driven by YouTube Gaming's record 2.2 billion hours watched.
Twitch’s market share declined by 4.6 percent, causing its quarterly viewership to drop below five billion hours for the first time in nearly five years.
Kick grew its viewership share by 5.5 percent during Q2 2025, bolstered by the platform's active creator-incentive programs.
Esports viewership rose six percent to a record 729 million hours, even as the total number of tournaments contracted by 37 percent.
Audience engagement in esports is shifting away from traditional tournament structures toward mobile titles, co-streaming, and creator-led event formats.
Virtual personalities are gaining significant influence, evidenced by VTuber Usada Pekora becoming the most-subscribed creator in the second quarter of 2025.
Growth is increasingly driven by hybrid content formats that integrate gaming with established intellectual properties and cross-genre collaborations.
Live‑streaming activity in the second quarter of 2025 expanded by five percent year‑over‑year, pushing total consumption past the nine‑billion‑hour mark for the first time since late 2021. The surge was led by YouTube Gaming, which recorded a historic 2.2 billion hours watched, while Kick’s creator‑incentive scheme lifted its viewership share by 5.5 percent. In contrast, Twitch’s share slipped 4.6 percent, dropping below five billion hours for the first time in nearly five years. These dynamics illustrate a reshaping of platform dominance, with emerging services gaining traction at the expense of long‑standing incumbents.
Esports consumption followed a parallel upward trajectory, rising six percent to a record 729 million hours despite a 37 percent contraction in the number of tournaments held. The sector’s growth was driven by a pivot toward mobile titles, co‑streaming formats, and creator‑led events, exemplified by the Rainbow Six Siege Invitational 2025. This shift underscores a broader trend in which audience engagement is increasingly tied to personalities and flexible production models rather than traditional tournament structures.
Content analysis highlights the ascendancy of hybrid formats that blend gaming with established intellectual properties, such as “Den Ring Nightreign” and “Survival Games with Dune.” VTuber Usada Pekora emerged as the most‑subscribed creator, confirming the expanding influence of virtual personalities. Collectively, cross‑genre collaborations, VTuber‑centric audiences, and creator‑driven esports are identified as the primary engines propelling live‑streaming growth throughout 2025, signaling a continued evolution toward integrated, personality‑focused entertainment across the global market.
