Microsoft's answer to Twitch, called Mixer, hasn't found the audience or numbers needed to consider it a success since it debuted a few years back. Even after signing exclusive streaming deals with popular personalities like Ninja and Shroud the service failed to gain traction or see sizable growth even as the world went into quarantine due to COVID-19. And now in a surprise move Microsoft has announced that Mixer is no more and will become a part of Facebook Gaming from July 22.

For those that have seen the announcement across social media, one of the big takeaways seems to be that most if not all Mixer streamers were not informed of the change or given a heads up. On that front, head of Xbox Phil Spencer notes, "We will work to transition the Mixer community over the next few weeks. Starting on July 22, all Mixer sites and apps will redirect users to Facebook Gaming."

For more info on the specifics relating to streamers looking to make the transition - head here.


As per the fine print Mixer Partners will automatically become Facebook Gaming Partners, though reports are hinting that popular streamers like Ninja might be opting out of their contracts to pursue other avenues. Credible sources are noting that Mixer and Microsoft have paid both Ninja and Shroud according to their contracts and that both are now free agents.

I love my community and what we built together on Mixer. I have some decisions to make and will be thinking about you all as I make them.

— Ninja (@Ninja) June 22, 2020

This partnership with Facebook looks to quite huge with the company's Project xCloud technology looking to implement click-and-play technology within both Facebook Gaming and Instagram. "Transitioning the Mixer community is a key part of a broader effort that Xbox and Facebook Gaming are embarking on," Phil writes. "Bringing new experiences and opportunities to Facebook, where every month more than 700 million people play a game, watch a gaming video, or interact in a gaming Group."

The Xbox Wire post by Phil is titled "Bringing More Players Into Our Gaming Vision" -- and although quite the surprise does point to Microsoft's new and more open approach when it comes to embracing the competition. From cross-play to PC support and releasing games like Minecraft Dungeons on all platforms. Though it's worth highlighting that perhaps why this isn't about Twitch might come down to Amazon's cloud services being a direct competitor to Microsoft's Azure technology.