Popular Twitch streamers have been utilizing the host function offered on the platform to support friends and other creators when they aren't streaming, but that's coming to an end soon. Hosting has been a prominent feature on Twitch since 2014, but the Amazon livestreaming service has confirmed that hosting will be removed later this year.Twitch recently updated its frequently asked questions section to reflect the fact that the hosting feature will disappear on October 3, leaving streamers less than a month to get those last-minute hosts in. This feature is commonly utilized while a livestreamer is offline. They host another channel by exposing their viewers to it within their own page which increases the potential for viewers to merge communities. Because renowned streamers like Critical Bard, JaredFPS, iMoparHD, and xxBrandy have experimented with the Twitch hosting function, many content creators including the aforementioned livestreamers have spoken out against the big change to the platform.RELATED: Twitch Streamer Fuslie May Be Moving to YouTubeTwitch streamers that have a regular group of channels that are automatically hosted after they go offline will see these users as "Suggested Channels" after the removal of hosting on October 3. According to Twitch, this change is being made to the platform because "the experience it delivers to viewers doesn’t match their expectations when they come to Twitch.” The update also suggests that although hosting on Twitch can be beneficial, it also may limit "a streamer's growth potential because they’re not able to build meaningful connections" with their audience.

After the removal of the host function, Twitch recommends that livestreamers that wish to support other content creators give them shoutouts on their shows and other content, continue to raid them, or add the users to their new suggested channels section. The key difference between hosting and raiding on Twitch is that a host will embed the alternate content onto a user's channel, while an account that raids another will actually bring their audience with them off of their page onto that of their raid target. Raiding will remain in place for the foreseeable future, making it the most useful tool for Twitch streamers to send their viewers to other channels once the host option has been deleted.

Although hate raids have become an issue on Twitch in the past, with livestreamers like Pokimane becoming depressed from the onslaught of viewers joining a stream with negativity, the removal of the hosting feature may be an action to prevent cases like this. Critical Bard was among the well-known Twitch streamers that spoke out about the removal of hosting, saying that the feature being deleted is "unnecessary," a sentiment that is largely shared across the board. JaredFPS stated "Just can’t understand what’s going on over there," while others like iMoparHD hinted that getting rid of the raid feature would be an even bigger deal than the disappearance of hosting.

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Source: Twitch