Trainwreck Exposes Clout-Chasing Streamers Spending $20K Weekly on Viewbots

Revelations on Viewbotting Practices from Kick Co-Owner Trainwreck

Trainwreck, a co-owner of Kick, has recently shed light on the alarming scale of viewbotting within the streaming community, revealing that some streamers are investing up to $20,000 per week in sophisticated viewbot systems. These insights highlight the fierce competition for visibility and recognition in a crowded digital landscape.

The Importance of Streaming Views

In the realm of streaming, view counts are not just numbers; they signify popularity and can unlock lucrative sponsorship deals. Unfortunately, this has led to persistent allegations of viewbotting—a practice where individuals artificially inflate their viewer counts to appear more popular than they are. This concern has been prominent, with Kick’s staff citing instances where their leading streamer, N3on, reportedly had over 60,000 bots boosting his viewer statistics.

A Comparison of Kick and Twitch

Trainwreck has previously argued that while viewbotting exists on both platforms, it is even more rampant on Twitch, which he claims houses the “number one” viewbotted streamer. During a recent Twitch stream on November 14, 2023, he provided insights gained from his discussions with developers working on the platform.

Striking Financial Investments in Viewbotting

According to Trainwreck, some viewbot operators invest substantial amounts in their systems, stating, “They’ve calculated that some viewbots cost between $10,000 and $20,000 a week!” For such significant sums, one would expect a high level of sophistication, and he confirms that these bots are indeed intricate.

“I’m talking fully automated, with IP addresses strategically spread out. The basic viewbots typically reveal geographical clustering, but current models can ping IPs from various cities across the globe without overlaps,” he elaborated.

Kick, Twitch, and YouTube logos side-by-side — Logos of Kick, Twitch, and YouTube

Regulatory developments are also shaping the landscape. Recent legislation from the US Federal Trade Commission prohibits “fake social media indicators,”including viewbotting, effectively rendering such practices illegal. Nevertheless, industry voices like streaming giant Felix ‘xQc’ Lengyel express skepticism about the efficacy of these rules, suggesting that enforcement may prove challenging.

Detection and Future Implications

Despite the advanced technology behind viewbots, Trainwreck insists that there are detection methods available. However, he has refrained from disclosing these strategies to avoid allowing viewbotters to adapt and improve their tactics. He remarked, “Clout is a hell of a drug,” emphasizing the lengths to which some will go for online fame.

The ongoing discourse around viewbotting reflects not just the ethical dilemmas in streaming but also raises questions about the integrity of audience engagement metrics in an increasingly competitive environment.

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