The news: Viewers worldwide watched 29.5 billion hours of livestreams in Q3 2026 as chat events dominated views.

• YouTube led with 11.6 billion hours watched, a 39.2% share, and TikTok Live followed with 10.4 billion, or 35.4%, across gaming and nongaming categories, per Hatchet’s quarterly trends report.
• Twitch and Kick trailed far behind with 16.0% and 6.3% share, respectively, and all others reached a total 3.1% share.

Excluding TikTok Live, which made its first appearance in Hatchet’s quarterly report, total hours fell 8.4% YoY, ending a three-year run of third-quarter gains.

Zooming in: Gaming made up only 31.3% of hours watched, and the larger nongaming audience has settled on two social video platforms. YouTube captured 50.7% of nongaming hours and TikTok Live earned 45.3%, leaving every other service with about 4% combined.

Chats drew 5.4 billion hours—or a 32% share of the top 10 nongaming categories—beating gaming’s 3.6 billion hours. News and politics, sports, fashion, and entertainment rounded out the top five, each with less than half of chats’ share.

Implications for marketers: Livestreaming has become a creator and community channel first, and that opens two paths for brands—sponsorships and brand-hosted streams.

• Partnering with creators whose streams already draw loyal, talkative audiences could pay off more than a single placement, especially if brands have a steady presence across many streams. These events place a brand inside moments viewers chose to attend.
• Brand-hosted streams give marketers control of the message, but they demand production work and hosts who can hold attention. Disney kicked off its first Super Brand Day November 4 to 10 with a TikTok Live hosted by the Disney Store. It boosted top-of-funnel reach with creator storytelling, exclusive products, and third-party licensed products.

Marketers should treat every stream as a community event. Answer comments in real time, greet regular viewers by name, and let the chat steer what gets shown next so commenters feel connected to the brand. Measure comments, shares, and returning viewers alongside sales, since engagement tends to build before conversions do.

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