"Yitiaoxiaotuantuan" confirmed arrested: Douyu streamer's 154-day horror livestream battle royale
From November 22, 2023, when DouYu CEO Chen Shaojie was arrested on suspicion of running a gambling operation, to April 23, 2024, when the news of "Yitiaoxiaotuantuan" being confirmed arrested topped the hot searches.
DouYu streamers experienced 154 days of a nerve-wracking live-streaming survival game:They were unsure if they were involved in the case and didn't know whether Yitiaoxiaotuantuan's arrest marked the end of the investigation.
During the days when DouYu was shrouded in gambling suspicions due to CEO Chen Shaojie's arrest, a large number of top DouYu streamers suspended their broadcasts, with only a few later announcing their return.
Despite the crisis, DouYu persisted. On March 26, DouYu released its 2023 financial report, achieving its first profit in nearly three years after significant cost reductions.
However, some industry insiders noted that the incident has dampened the morale of certain streamers. "Suspending broadcasts or switching platforms is a privilege for top streamers; more mid-tier streamers dare not stop. Even if they don't see a future with DouYu and plan to move to another platform, they need to work even harder now."
In this period of uncertainty, both streamers and the platform are eagerly awaiting a return to stability.
Mass Suspension of DouYu Streamers
On January 27, 2024, "Yitiaoxiaotuantuan OvO" announced on DouYu's forum that she would suspend her broadcasts. This was only a year after her return to streaming.
This became her last public post, with no further updates since.
As a flagship streamer for DouYu, "Yitiaoxiaotuantuan OvO" had 26 million fans on DouYu and 37 million on TikTok, boasting immense commercial value and collaborations with multiple games.
Previously, she participated in the promotional video for the mobile game "AFK Arena" as the "Chief Cheer Officer" and sang the brand anthem "AFK is Awesome."
She also recorded voice packs for "Peacekeeper Elite" and Amap. As of now, her voice pack on Amap remains available for download and enjoys high popularity.
On April 24, when news of "Yitiaoxiaotuantuan OvO"'s arrest broke, another name that trended alongside hers was PPD, who had been off-air for 161 days.
When consulted about the matter, DouYu's customer service responded,"The streamer's channel status is normal; whether to broadcast is a personal choice."
However, according to Tianyancha APP, of the 14 companies where Liu Mou (PPD's real name) serves as legal representative, only five remain operational.
The arrest of DouYu CEO Chen Shaojie for gambling-related charges swept through the platform like a storm, causing many streamers to pause and observe. For a time,DouYu streamers were all "dealing with emergencies," hanging up their "Do Not Disturb" signs.
Among the first wave of top streamers to suspend broadcasts were DouYu's "Hearthstone King" "Gouzei" and "League of Legends" streamer "Da Sima."
Of these suspended streamers, only a few resumed after confirming their safety, such as Doinb. Shortly after Chen Shaojie's arrest, Doinb and his wife returned to South Korea and began deleting his past live-stream recordings.
On April 6, Doinb returned to streaming after five months, inviting three IG team players for his comeback live stream. His channel quickly reclaimed the top spot in DouYu's "League of Legends" section.
More top streamers chose to switch platforms. In August 2023, former "DouYu King" Xuxubaobao debuted on TikTok. The live stream attracted 60.11 million views, with an average of 1.708 million concurrent viewers. In December, top gaming streamer Zhang Daxian announced his move to TikTok, quickly topping the platform's popularity charts with over 1 billion likes and gaining 50 million followers in less than 19 days.
However, switching platforms doesn't mean the crisis is over for streamers. Xuxubaobao, who had just moved to TikTok, suspended his broadcasts again shortly after, allegedly due to investigations. Upon his return, he avoided questions about "gambling," only saying, "I should have gone to Huya back then."
An insider revealed,"Most gaming streamers are in the safe zone." The reason is that the gaming section is primarily for traffic acquisition, bearing less revenue pressure.
In April, DouYu's "Dota" section top streamer YYF disclosed that the "Dota" division has been operating at a loss annually.
"DouYu staff told me the 'Dota' section is among the top three loss-making divisions. 'Dota' community members don't spend money in the 'Dota' section but in others, like the 'Beauty' section."
This explains why "Dota" streamers were largely unaffected by the DouYu turmoil.
"The bigger the loss, the lower the risk" became an ironic truth. Earlier, "Dota" section OB brothers mentioned their contracts had no strict requirements on viewer donations, focusing only on streaming duration—essentially "retirement contracts."
But many streamers, aiming for higher revenue, enabled "gambling-like" lottery features, which became a source of anxiety.
The Blurred Line of Lotteries
Live-stream lotteries were once seen as a goldmine for platforms.
Streamers would host high-value cash lotteries (¥10,000–20,000), requiring viewers to purchase a "fan card" for entry. The platform imposed no limits on card purchases.
This meant more cards increased winning odds, effectively turning it into gambling. While individual card costs were low, massive fan bases and some viewers buying hundreds led to staggering revenue.
For example, DouYu streamer "Changsha Rural Daredevils," dubbed "DouYu's biggest casino," was exposed in 2021 for raking in ¥177 million annually, with single-day revenue hitting ¥13.1767 million.
DouYu was aware of the risks. According to Yema Caijing,the platform issued "lottery speech guidelines" to all streamers.
DouYu's stance on whether lotteries constituted gambling was ambiguous. Before streamer "San San Jiu Outdoor" was convicted for gambling, DouYu defended him.
Ultimately, "San San Jiu Outdoor"'s three streamers were sentenced to six years for running a gambling operation, having hosted 4,200 lotteries with 4.42 million participants and ¥120 million involved.
Legally,whether lotteries qualify as gambling depends on case specifics.
"Pure probability-based activities aren't criminal. The standard for convicting someone of running a gambling operation lies in whether they actively built or ignored a gambling loop: 'public betting—probability mechanics—open currency exchange,'" explained a lawyer.
This left many streamers unsure of their legal exposure.
An insider revealed that requiring fan cards for lotteries is common, and many streamers don't host them for revenue.
To many, DouYu is now a target, making even legitimate lotteries risky.
Some streamers disclosed that short-video platforms also use lottery tactics for traffic. Many now pre-record streams and broadcast them on alternate accounts.
"This keeps a lower profile, but the model is the same: gifts for random cash rewards in private groups."
Under pressure, top streamers avoid risks, while smaller ones scatter across multiple channels.
DouYu's Uncertain Future
Under pressure, streamers are leaving, largely due to lost faith in DouYu's future.
DouYu's paying users continue to decline: Q4 2023 MAU was 51.7 million, down 5.7 million YoY; average paying users fell to 3.7 million, down 1.9 million YoY.
Despite cost-cutting turning a profit in 2023, two major issues remain unresolved.
First, DouYu's appeal as a content platform. Q4 operating costs dropped 21.8% to ¥1.17 billion. DouYu attributed this toreduced revenue-sharing and content costs, down 30.3%.
Both cuts imply reduced content output.
Though DouYu plans to invest in original content, this isn't new. Years of "original content" efforts have yet to yield breakthroughs.
Second,compared to uncertain "content," monetization is a clearer problem. Previously, DouYu straddled "porn" and "gambling" for revenue. Beyond CEO Chen's arrest, in May 2023, the Cyberspace Administration launched a month-long 整改督导 over DouYu's "pornographic and vulgar" content.
In fact, DouYu was named in the "Pornography Crackdown" 2022 recap by the Cyberspace Administration on February 26, 2023. In April 2023, it was again flagged in the Q1 "Clear and Bright" campaign for "spreading pornographic content."
On October 25, 2023, DouYu warned that its ADS closing price had been below $1 for 30 consecutive trading days. If it didn't recover by April 22, 2024, delisting loomed.
As of April 22, DouYu's stock closed at $8.29.
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