Twitch is leaving South Korea over “prohibitively expensive” operating costs

Twitch is ceasing operations in South Korea, one of the esports capitals of the world, because operating there is “prohibitively expensive,” CEO Dan Clancy said in a company blog post.

He explained that Twitch has been running on a “significant loss” in South Korea due to fees associated with internet access and data transmission. (As the New York Times points out, South Korea charges foreign content providers substantially higher network fees–a practice that’s led to several lawsuits, including one involving Netflix.) The platform has been working to reduce its costs: it experimented with lowering stream quality to a max of 720p, which did bring things down, but even with that change, network fees in South Korea are still 10x what they are in other countries, Clancy explained.

“[U]nfortunately there is no pathway forward for our business to run more sustainably in that country,” he said.

Twitch will go dark in South Korea on Feb. 27, 2024.

It’s not immediately clear whether people in South Korea will still be able to access Twitch as viewers. What is clear is that South Korean creators who have built their careers and communities on Twitch will be dramatically affected.

One streamer, Yummy_2, went live on Twitch right after the announcement, and gave viewers an emotional look at how this decision will change her life. “I lost my job. My career,” she said. “Everything that I made, I made partner streamer, everything will be gone.”

She went on to say she sees “only two options”: move to another platform, or move to another country.

Clancy said Twitch wants to help South Korean streamers become established on other platforms. “We will work to help Twitch streamers in Korea move their communities to alternative livestreaming services in Korea,” he said. “We are also reaching out to several of these services to help with the transition and will communicate with impacted streamers as those discussions progress.”

All of that is easier said than done, though, and it doesn’t sound like Twitch has any concrete arrangements with other platforms yet.

“I want to reiterate that this was a very difficult decision and one we are very disappointed we had to make,” Clancy said. “Korea has always and will continue to play a special role in the international esports community and we are incredibly grateful for the communities they built on Twitch.”

South Korean teams tend to be a powerhouse staple in esports. Games like League of Legends, Overwatch, and Apex Legends have seen South Korean teams dominate in their tournaments for years–and often, those tournaments were streamed on Twitch.

We’ll keep an eye out for any more information that could help South Korean streamers in the leadup to Twitch’s shutdown.