South Korean’s game livestreaming landscape is finding a new normal now that Twitch shut down its operations in the country in February 2024. Two main contenders — AfreecaTV’s SOOP and Naver’s CHZZK — are vying for former Twitch viewers and talent.
According to StreamElements and its data partner Streams Charts, total Korean language hours watched across the three platforms fell 18% from January to March 2024. SOOP’s viewership remained relatively stable during this period despite the changing landscape. According to Streams Charts, SOOP’s Q1 hours watched grew 6.6% from the previous quarter.
In comparison, CHZZK grew rapidly in Q1 of 2024. The platform more than doubled its monthly hours watched from January to March. In the same period, the number of active channels also grew eight-fold.
CHZZK is benefiting from Twitch’s exit from South Korea, but this growth is also a result of the platform’s timing. The platform launched its open beta on December 19, 2023, giving former Twitch streamers a chance to build their audience on a less established platform than AfreecaTV’s SOOP.
“This past year, the discourse on livestreaming platforms has been rooted in Twitch, YouTube, and Kick as content creators weigh options for reaching the broadest audience. In South Korea, AfreecaTV’s SOOP and Naver’s CHZZK are two other players who might join the conversation,” said Or Perry, cofounder of StreamElements. “Both platforms are working on global launches this year featuring English-language accessibility, with CHZZK currently in beta and SOOP’s beta announced for the first half of 2024. The best thing any industry can offer is options, so it will be interesting to see if the Hallyu that boosted K-pop and K-dramas extends to gaming platforms.”
Both SOOP and CHZZK plan to expand with English language support in 2024. SOOP will launch globally in the first half of the year with CHZZK set to follow.