[sbarre]

> I just meant twitch users pay for the sake of giving money to their favorite streamers rather than paying for a product.

I still think this is a narrow view.

So you don't consider a performance to be a product?

How is going to the movies different from going to a baseball game or a concert or a comedy club?

If those are like movies, and movies are like groceries, are we not back to the same point that people are exchanging money for some kind of benefit, whether it's a tangible thing they take home or an experience they enjoy?

[NineStarPoint]

I think strip clubs are a fair comparison. All of the things you listed, you pay money for access to the experience. The money changes hands before you get in the door. For both strip clubs and twitch, getting in the door is free. In both cases what you pay money for is the attention of the streamer/stripper in the moment you are giving the money (or just because you feel like giving money to them for the performance you are seeing.)

A less emotionally evocative example might be giving money to a street musician who accepts requests for donations. Either way, the street musician is there performing and you can enjoy the music whether you pay or not. But the money gets you a bonus, and you’re free to give money regardless of desire to request a song.

[sbarre]

I'm not sure I agree that "paying money to get attention" is the majority of the monetary interactions on Twitch.

Or at least, maybe that's a welcome side effect but not the main motivation for a lot of people.

I am guessing here, I have no data to back this up, but I feel like a lot of people sub out of gratitude and as a show of support, and less to draw attention or get some kind of shout-out..

I do watch a decent amount of streams on Twitch across a few categories, but I've never subscribed or donated to any of them, so it's possible I'm wrong here.

Also I did make the distinction between paid performances and "pay what you can".. That was indeed my point, that Twitch differentiates itself by being an essentially "pay what you can" service where the majority don't pay anything, but lots of people still manage to make money giving their work away for free.