How does Ludwig’s subathon work?

Twitch variety streamer Ludwig started a “subathon” stream last Sunday, March 14. And since then, his life has turned into The Truman Show.

Looking to get as many subscribers and donations as possible, Ludwig began a stream that could be extended in length by people subscribing or donating.

Unlike some subscription marathon streams, this subathon has no cap to how long it can last. If people continue to subscribe and donate to Ludwig’s stream, the stream will continue.

The stream was started with a 30-minute timer on March 14 in the afternoon. Within just a few minutes, subscriptions and donations started flying in, boosting the timer in the upper corner of Ludwig’s stream to more than an hour before he even had a chance to explain the rules.

Initially, subscriptions to Ludwig’s channel added 20 seconds to the clock. Tier-two subs added 40 seconds, while tier-three subs added 100 seconds.

Additionally, bit donations could add time to the clock on a scale that matched the dollar equivalent of subscriptions. For instance, a 500 bit donation, which is $5, would add the same amount of time that a tier one sub would. Direct donations do not count toward the timer.

The exact amount of time added with varying subscriptions has changed, however. Right now, subscriptions add 10 seconds to the timer on Ludwig’s stream. Tier-two subs add 20 seconds and tier-three subs add 50.

But that hasn’t stopped the timer from blasting off.

Since starting his stream almost a week ago, Ludwig has racked up his subscriber total to more than 80,000 subs and his 30-minute timer has surpassed 69 hours.

With cap of 31 days, Ludwig is effectively turning a month of his life into one extremely long stream.

While the stream never ends, Ludwig is still allowed to carry on with his routine. But he needs to bring his stream along with him. 

He’s not losing sleep or going without showers, though. Instead, he must keep his stream running and take the chat with him while he sleeps or bathes.

Of course, in the process, he’s making sure to keep himself clothed enough to fall in line with Twitch’s community guidelines for nudity and attire.