In an update to Twitch’s ‘How To Use Host Mode’ article, the streaming platform added a new viewership requirement. In order for a host notification to appear, the hosting user needs to have at least three viewers.
Hosting is a common practice on Twitch and among the effective methods of growing viewership and expanding community. Whenever any given streamer intends to end their broadcast, they have the option to find another streamer to send their viewers to watch after their own stream has concluded. Often a means of supporting smaller creators or building one’s network, hosting is an integral part of Twitch’s streaming ecosystem.
Prior to this change, streamers were already given significant control over how they can receive hosts. Though most streamers typically welcome hosts and viewer raids, they can disable hosting or block specific users from placing them on autohost lists. Streamers can also already set viewer requirements for hosting channels to give off alerts. This is typically used by larger streamers who do not want their overlay to be bombarded by small viewer hosts.
Twitch has seemingly codified viewer requirements across the board, however, now setting a base requirement of three viewers to send any sort of notification. Along with being alerted to hosts by way of Twitch, most streamers also have overlays or visual effects that appear whenever they receive hosts. Users with fewer than three viewers can still host channels and streamers will be alerted of the host, but it will not bring any on-screen notification.
This change is only a slight addendum to Twitch’s standing host mode requirements and will likely only affect small-streamer-to-small-streamer hosts.
