Tyler "Ninja" Blevins, the most popular professional gamer in the world, will begin broadcasting exclusively on Microsoft's video-game-streaming platform, Mixer, starting Friday.
The exclusivity deal was announced on Thursday — it's unclear how far into the future the deal extends, or how much Microsoft paid to pull Ninja away from his current streaming home, Twitch.
—Ninja (@Ninja) August 1, 2019
Ninja began his streaming career eight years ago as a "Halo" player before turning into a cultural phenomenon best known for playing "Fortnite." He has amassed more than 14 million followers on Twitch, the top video-game-streaming platform, owned by Amazon.
That's twice as many as the second-most-popular Twitch streamer.
"I never would have thought that I could build a career by doing what I love, and I am extremely grateful for the incredible experiences that I have had," Ninja said in a press release. "As I look at the next step in my career, achieving bigger goals in the gaming industry with Mixer will allow me to have the perfect balance of opportunities and success."
Ninja will kick off his first Mixer stream during Lollapalooza, broadcasting live from a Red Bull-sponsored studio from Friday to Sunday.
Ninja has been vocal about his desire to expand his repertoire beyond "Fortnite." Despite his massive audience, Ninja has discussed the stress of trying to maintain a healthy base of paid subscribers on Twitch.
Ninja will also attend broader gaming events throughout the year in support of Mixer.
Microsoft's streaming service, launched in 2016, is featured on the Xbox dashboard but has failed to gain traction compared with Twitch and YouTube.
Ninja's arrival could help boost the platform's visibility, but it's unclear whether Ninja's millions of fans will follow him to Mixer.
