Felix ‘xQc’ Lengyel shut down Mizkif’s claim that women are bound by what he described as a “glass ceiling” on Twitch, insisting it largely depends on their approach and strategy.
On March 6, Mizkif claimed women have a “much easier time,” hitting the 100 to 200 viewer mark on Twitch. He also said he believes they are bound by a “glass ceiling” that’s almost “impossible to get through.”
xQc disagrees with that take, though. He thinks it’s true to an extent but depends on the nature of their content — and more specifically, whether their strategy is based on giving attention to parasocial viewers.
“This is half-true and half disingenuous,” said xQc. “If you take the argument at face value, this is correct. It’s true women overall have an easier time getting to the 200 – 300 viewer mark because of certain appeals.”
As for the glass ceiling claims, he said: “If you cater heavily to parasocial viewers and give them what they want, you’re giving them attention. But what happens when numbers scale up? People get less attention, so they watch less.”
On the contrary, he explained: “If you focus from the get-go on being entertaining and making an entertaining stream, regardless of attention given to individuals, you overall will break through that ceiling.”
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For that reason, he doesn’t think it impacts all women on Twitch. “It is easier for women to get to that 200 – 300 viewer mark with these techniques,” he said. “But you’re only going to hit the ceiling if you direct things this way.”
xQc referenced Pokimane to illustrate his point. “There were times where she catered more to individuals, but later on, she focused entirely on gameplay and entertainment, which is completely separate.”
Poki is indeed an outlier in terms of success. After all, she is the ninth most followed streamer on the platform. Still, xQc believes she is the perfect example of a woman who has broken through the supposed glass ceiling.
