Why Are We Studying Live Streaming?
Over the last decade, millions of people have signed on to live streaming platforms to share their lives with others. As of March 2021, 9.6 million different content creators have streamed on Twitch, which is currently the largest streaming platform in the U.S. Some of these content creators turned their hobby into a paid career and in the process, they pioneered a new form of work!
As scholars of work, our team wanted to learn more about how content creators navigate the constantly evolving space of streaming and what they experience in their day-to-day lives. While we saw live streaming as part of the growing Platform Economy, we suspected live streaming differs from other Platform Economy jobs, such as Uber or Upwork, in fundamental ways. Trends point to an increasing importance of Platform Economy jobs in the future and it is crucial to develop a better understand of this space.
As our study developed, we realized that we needed to include perspectives of individuals with different roles in the content creation realm to get a full picture. Consequently, we also interviewed former live streamers, live streaming moderators, and former Twitch employees to get their unique perspectives.
Who are we?
We are a team of researchers at the University of North Carolina at Charlotte passionate about content creation.
IMPORTANT NOTE: We are NOT affiliated with Twitch or any other content-creating platform. We are independent researchers employed by UNC-Charlotte, funded by taxpayers like you.
To learn about each member of the team, click the link below:
Banner images courtesy of @jeroendenotter, @konkarampelas, and @casparrubin