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2022 Balloon Donation Rankings for SC streamers in South Korea
This is a ranking of the real earnings of Korean StarCraft players, which shows why there are still so many Koreans in the game.
This statistics do not include the vast majority of female SC streamers.
all info from：poong.today
Statistics on January 28, 2023
Exchange rate： 1 balloon = 100 KRW ；1 USD = 1,230 KRW ；1 CNY = 181 KRW
（TOP25）
![[image loading]](https://i.imgur.com/53OQU0t.png)
（26-49）
![[image loading]](https://i.imgur.com/Z09UFX8.png)
（Some others）
![[image loading]](https://i.imgur.com/F1BtHTS.png)
Notes:
1 Thanks for jinjin5000's contribution，We need more information from inside Korea.
https://tl.net/forum/brood-war/604596-2022-balloon-donation-rankings-for-bw-streamers
2 BJ type and balloon currency exchange policy description:
https://namu.wiki/w/별풍선
3 soO is the StarcraftII Korean highest balloon income player 2022,But nothing compares to StarCraft I,So many StarCraft II players retired and returned to StarCraft I in Korea.
4 Korean female StarCraft BJs not included on this list generally earn as much or more than their male counterparts,That's why you can see a lot of female StarCraft BJs in Korea.
Rome was not built in a day
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That's insane. Even Clam got 400 000 $! I'm happy for them. Happy that they can still make such a good living playing Starcraft.
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Interesting.
Question: does this only count star balloons from Afreeca? I think some of them get direct donation via youtube and other platforms. For example Brain is almost bottom of the table but I believe he has a huge audience from youtube, bigger than many of the top pros.
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Wow didn't know Shuttle was THAT popular and he's only one with Calm on top5 who play SC and qualify for ASL. Strange seeing Larva so down but he has two big youtube channels so maybe he's making a lot more.
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On March 08 2023 22:02 TMNT wrote:
Interesting.
Question: does this only count star balloons from Afreeca? I think some of them get direct donation via youtube and other platforms. For example Brain is almost bottom of the table but I believe he has a huge audience from youtube, bigger than many of the top pros.
Yes ,only count star balloons from Afreeca
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Kind of surprised to see Light so low on the list. But that... is a lot of money...
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So gaming doesnt matter, just be entertaining.
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Basically zero motivation to win a tournament. Kind of wondering what they're doing with the kind of money, although KR seems like an expensive place to live and gamers are notoriously bad with money.
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Fastest BJs are more focused on youtube streaming and get a lot of superchats from there that dwarfs their afreeca baloons. Brain, burgersasu for example. memberships too.
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well, average salary in Seoul is about 40k$ per year, so 50 starcrafters earn that or better... what can i say, i think being top50 on earth in BroodWar is pretty damn hard. And to be top5 is almost insane. The skill and practice time is incredible.
I know that some of those that earn above 40k$ are not really top50 but they are close enough.
Also Snow who i consider top1-3 right now is at about average in that list
...
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On March 09 2023 02:01 RJBTV wrote:Brain superchats. Can't see his membership rates. ![[image loading]](https://i.imgur.com/OtWWwoq.png)
Lmao no wonder why dude played one ASL season and never returned. He'd have made the Protoss line-up not as pathetic as it currently is.
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Netherlands5185 Posts
I'm surprised ToSsGirL doesn't have more symps. Perhaps she's passed the age to appeal that group.
I mean she is easy on the eyes, friendly and is the top player amongst chicks. Maybe not very entertaining regardless.
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On March 09 2023 02:15 TMNT wrote:Show nested quote +On March 09 2023 02:01 RJBTV wrote:Brain superchats. Can't see his membership rates. Lmao no wonder why dude played one ASL season and never returned. He'd have made the Protoss line-up not as pathetic as it currently is.
good for him, shame for BW..
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For the guys who make a ton of money but aren’t close to the top tier of players anymore, what are their streams like? Are they more a variety streamer so a bunch of games and lifestyle type stuff?
It’s fascinating what the average joe spends their money on.
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United Kingdom12023 Posts
It's insane how much money streamers make man. I don't hate them for it but seeing someone who makes more in 1 year than it'd take me in 30 years is really fucking depressing. That's just looking at Britney, look at someone like Mr Beast and he probably makes more than Britney makes a year in a week. Capitalism is so fucking broken man.
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Without capitalism everyone would be sitting on their asses doing nothing. It incentivize creativity and innovation.
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Keep in mind that this is South Korea where a common above-average salary is 110K/yr.
It's a high-income country. Probably the highest where BW actually has/had a following. I actually think that's one of the reasons the game is not dead yet.
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United Kingdom12023 Posts
On March 09 2023 15:34 MeSaber wrote:
Without capitalism everyone would be sitting on their asses doing nothing. It incentivize creativity and innovation.
I... I'm not going to even attempt to argue with this but this is just completely wrong.
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On March 09 2023 16:39 oxKnu wrote:
Keep in mind that this is South Korea where a common above-average salary is 110K/yr.
It's a high-income country. Probably the highest where BW actually has/had a following. I actually think that's one of the reasons the game is not dead yet.
It might be common for a tech employee to make north of $100k (USD), but the median household income is around $20-25k USD, with decently employed people making around $40k USD/year. Their cost of living is definitely lower than most US cities, but it's expensive relative to the median income.
I'm always skeptical of these streamer numbers, but if it's true, they're all doing incredibly well. Even sOs over here making a living off of balloons.
Britney obviously has a huge following, but it's always amazed me that there are still so many people interested in watching people play this old-ass game. Stuff like Melee is popular in the west despite it's age (and I'd argue it aged way better), but there are only 3 melee streamers that reach 6 digits from streaming. There just isn't that kind of widespread support. Odd how these things end up. I guess a lot of Koreans just really like these guys!
Without capitalism everyone would be sitting on their asses doing nothing. It incentivize creativity and innovation.
o ok. Ironically, these streamers are quite literally sitting on their asses and effectively doing nothing.
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I don't trust that this is what they're making. It's unreasonable much considering the number of viewers.
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On March 09 2023 18:34 A.Alm wrote:
I don't trust that this is what they're making. It's unreasonable much considering the number of viewers.
You can verify it yourself. It's quite easy.
At 8-10pm KST, turn on the stream of one of the popular pros (say Shuttle or Bisu) when they crowdfund for Major Proleague (for example https://vod.afreecatv.com/player/99316078?change_second=13619) and see the balloons pouring in.
Look at Shuttle's notepad: that's 8300 balloons per winner (4), which mean 33k balloons in total, which means on average each of the player gathered ~ 400k KRW in 15 minutes (a bit low yesterday, typically it's ~ 500k KRW or even more).
Say a player plays 15 Proleagues per month and win 50% of them, that means he earns 6m KRW per month from Proleague alone, not counting other donations during their stream (sponmatches, or when they have a good game), prize money from tournaments, sponsorship, ads, youtube revenue, etc. It's not hard to imagine the average top pros earn 10m KRW per month.
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Right now: Sea is organizing a showmatch (with Rain, Soulkey, ggaemo, and other female BJs) and the amount of donated balloons currently sits at 127k (still increasing) which translate to roughly 10k usd.
![[image loading]](https://i.imgur.com/5s3uZSU.png)
Holy shit they ended up hoarding 18M KRW in total prize. Winning team takes it all.
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Seems a little strange that they can't organize a more developed regular pro scene with that kind of following though. Awesome that Korea still appreciates the beauty of BW. Best game ever made in my opinion.
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On March 09 2023 19:00 TMNT wrote:Show nested quote +On March 09 2023 18:34 A.Alm wrote:
I don't trust that this is what they're making. It's unreasonable much considering the number of viewers. You can verify it yourself. It's quite easy. At 8-10pm KST, turn on the stream of one of the popular pros (say Shuttle or Bisu) when they crowdfund for Major Proleague (for example https://vod.afreecatv.com/player/99316078?change_second=13619) and see the balloons pouring in. Look at Shuttle's notepad: that's 8300 balloons per winner (4), which mean 33k balloons in total, which means on average each of the player gathered ~ 400k KRW in 15 minutes (a bit low yesterday, typically it's ~ 500k KRW or even more). Say a player plays 15 Proleagues per month and win 50% of them, that means he earns 6m KRW per month from Proleague alone, not counting other donations during their stream (sponmatches, or when they have a good game), prize money from tournaments, sponsorship, ads, youtube revenue, etc. It's not hard to imagine the average top pros earn 10m KRW per month.
If the numbers are right then that's really good for brood war. At the same time, a bit sad that the rest of the BW community combined barely generate any money.
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On March 09 2023 06:50 RowdierBob wrote:
For the guys who make a ton of money but aren’t close to the top tier of players anymore, what are their streams like? Are they more a variety streamer so a bunch of games and lifestyle type stuff?
It’s fascinating what the average joe spends their money on.
The top top earners are more focused on "보라" = abbreviation for "보이는 라디오" = "radio you can see". Streams are based on their entertaining personalities. Britney and Terror are more 보라 streamers who used to play Brood War.
Sea is chiefly a 보라 streamer, but dabbles a lot in BW when opportunities arise, such as the University craze last year and now the burgeoning Academy system growing now.
Rain has gone over to more 보라 than BW, but still plays at times though not competitively
Shuttle might be the best of both worlds, he is extremely popular as a streamer, but also is very involved in the competitive scene with daily proleague participation
Also do not underestimate the power of "큰손" = "big hand" indiviudal donators/viewers who are ridiculously rich and literally throw thousands of dollars at streamers. Even if you aren't popular, if you have some 큰손 donators, you can make a really good living
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I'd sure like to become a 큰손 some day...
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On March 09 2023 01:07 Zografa wrote:
well, average salary in Seoul is about 40k$ per year, so 50 starcrafters earn that or better... what can i say, i think being top50 on earth in BroodWar is pretty damn hard. And to be top5 is almost insane. The skill and practice time is incredible.
I know that some of those that earn above 40k$ are not really top50 but they are close enough.
Also Snow who i consider top1-3 right now is at about average in that list
...
Thing is, the top 50 earners are not the top 50 skilled, at all. Quite a bit of them are there mostly because they are entertaining.
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Canada11369 Posts
So is it more the equivalent of the OTV streamers or Valkyrae and Ludwig?
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On March 09 2023 16:39 oxKnu wrote:
Keep in mind that this is South Korea where a common above-average salary is 110K/yr.
It's a high-income country. Probably the highest where BW actually has/had a following. I actually think that's one of the reasons the game is not dead yet.
? Where are you getting this info? It's closer to 30-40k
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On March 10 2023 07:37 sM.Zik wrote:Show nested quote +On March 09 2023 01:07 Zografa wrote:
well, average salary in Seoul is about 40k$ per year, so 50 starcrafters earn that or better... what can i say, i think being top50 on earth in BroodWar is pretty damn hard. And to be top5 is almost insane. The skill and practice time is incredible.
I know that some of those that earn above 40k$ are not really top50 but they are close enough.
Also Snow who i consider top1-3 right now is at about average in that list
... Thing is, the top 50 earners are not the top 50 skilled, at all. Quite a bit of them are there mostly because they are entertaining.
Entertainment factor is the most important factor. It is why the entire concept of doing "troll builds vs lower level players" is so much of a success. Koreans find it super entertaining to watch. Its why Snow vs Artosis video got such a huge amount of views on Snow's channel. It has both Snow trolling and Artosis raging and despairing.
600K views.
youtu.be
Or this flash playing fastest map vs 458!!!(a fastest map protoss gosu) with 1 million views because he makes it dramatic.
youtu.be
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On March 10 2023 11:16 jinjin5000 wrote:Show nested quote +On March 09 2023 16:39 oxKnu wrote:
Keep in mind that this is South Korea where a common above-average salary is 110K/yr.
It's a high-income country. Probably the highest where BW actually has/had a following. I actually think that's one of the reasons the game is not dead yet. ? Where are you getting this info? It's closer to 30-40k
https://teleport.org/cities/seoul/salaries/
I like to look at "dentist" when comparing salaries around the world. It's a necessity for every human on the planet earth and is actually a good universal metric that is quite resilient to market volatities (location, policy etc)
I did say above average, I'm not talking about unskilled workers. Those are and will continue to be beaten down with garbage wages for the rest of time. (imho)
Fact is, SK is a high income country, especially Seoul. 100K is not the fortune that that would be in East Russia for example.
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On March 09 2023 17:15 Qikz wrote:Show nested quote +On March 09 2023 15:34 MeSaber wrote:
Without capitalism everyone would be sitting on their asses doing nothing. It incentivize creativity and innovation.
I... I'm not going to even attempt to argue with this but this is just completely wrong.
Good argument.
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On March 09 2023 18:15 Blargh wrote:Show nested quote +Without capitalism everyone would be sitting on their asses doing nothing. It incentivize creativity and innovation.
o ok. Ironically, these streamers are quite literally sitting on their asses and effectively doing nothing.
They are providing entertainment just as a movie does.
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The numbers have to be somewhat inflated right? I mean, when a team loses in proleague, they have to donate balloons to the winner team if I'm not mistaken.
On March 09 2023 17:15 Qikz wrote:Show nested quote +On March 09 2023 15:34 MeSaber wrote:
Without capitalism everyone would be sitting on their asses doing nothing. It incentivize creativity and innovation.
I... I'm not going to even attempt to argue with this but this is just completely wrong.
They're providing entertainment to thousands of people who are willingly paying to see someone exploit what they consider valuable, in this case high skill in Brood War and funny personalities.
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On March 11 2023 00:24 Galacsia wrote:
The numbers have to be somewhat inflated right? I mean, when a team loses in proleague, they have to donate balloons to the winner team if I'm not mistaken.
Yeah but the winning team gets all of that so it's balanced out. Someone like Shuttle who gets a lot of donations but doesn't win a lot may be inflated, but there will always be a Royal or a Light somewhere who benefits from that xD.
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On March 09 2023 17:15 Qikz wrote:Show nested quote +On March 09 2023 15:34 MeSaber wrote:
Without capitalism everyone would be sitting on their asses doing nothing. It incentivize creativity and innovation.
I... I'm not going to even attempt to argue with this but this is just completely wrong.
They are the top 0.0001% of the field who have willing fans giving them money to see entertainment in return
If this is something you see wrong with capitalism, you are targetting something way off. You arent seeing exploitation of another worker or whatever you are complaining about, these guys are small in overall picture. You are seeing entertainers getting paid from willing fans who want their product.
I really cant imagine why you have problem with it when these guys are smal players overall. I mean if you criticize flash on his coin stuff you have valid ground but getting paid from fans who want this from vast pool of viewers on #1 streamed game on afreeca? Thats something wrong with captitalism? Come on Qikz. That is ridiculous. You are just lashing out at anything at this point
Anyway im sure a lot of top 0.001% of their field regardless of video game or streaming or not gets paid well. If you have problem with people with merits getting paid qikz, seems unfair aint it?
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On March 11 2023 04:38 jinjin5000 wrote:Show nested quote +On March 09 2023 17:15 Qikz wrote:On March 09 2023 15:34 MeSaber wrote:
Without capitalism everyone would be sitting on their asses doing nothing. It incentivize creativity and innovation.
I... I'm not going to even attempt to argue with this but this is just completely wrong. They are the top 0.0001% of the field who have willing fans giving them money to see entertainment in return If this is something you see wrong with capitalism, you are targetting something way off. You arent seeing exploitation of another worker or whatever you are complaining about, these guys are small in overall picture. You are seeing entertainers getting paid from willing fans who want their product. I really cant imagine why you have problem with it when these guys are smal players overall. I mean if you criticize flash on his coin stuff you have valid ground but getting paid from fans who want this from vast pool of viewers on #1 streamed game on afreeca? Thats something wrong with captitalism? Come on Qikz. That is ridiculous. You are just lashing out at anything at this point Anyway im sure a lot of top 0.001% of their field regardless of video game or streaming or not gets paid well. If you have problem with people with merits getting paid qikz, seems unfair aint it?
What world do you live in?
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On March 11 2023 06:05 A.Alm wrote:Show nested quote +On March 11 2023 04:38 jinjin5000 wrote:On March 09 2023 17:15 Qikz wrote:On March 09 2023 15:34 MeSaber wrote:
Without capitalism everyone would be sitting on their asses doing nothing. It incentivize creativity and innovation.
I... I'm not going to even attempt to argue with this but this is just completely wrong. They are the top 0.0001% of the field who have willing fans giving them money to see entertainment in return If this is something you see wrong with capitalism, you are targetting something way off. You arent seeing exploitation of another worker or whatever you are complaining about, these guys are small in overall picture. You are seeing entertainers getting paid from willing fans who want their product. I really cant imagine why you have problem with it when these guys are smal players overall. I mean if you criticize flash on his coin stuff you have valid ground but getting paid from fans who want this from vast pool of viewers on #1 streamed game on afreeca? Thats something wrong with captitalism? Come on Qikz. That is ridiculous. You are just lashing out at anything at this point Anyway im sure a lot of top 0.001% of their field regardless of video game or streaming or not gets paid well. If you have problem with people with merits getting paid qikz, seems unfair aint it? What world do you live in?
Elaborate?
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streamers are providing entertainment in the similar vein like actors/comedians/sports athletes. not many of them to be found off the streets unlike average office workers so they are paid handsomely by the market as dictated by supply and demand. maybe the spiteful boomer salarymen here have to update their world view maybe
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thedeadhaji
39489 Posts
It’s basically price segmentation and a mechanism to reveal individuals’ different levels of willingness to pay for a particular product.
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streamers provide a product people are willing to throw money at. That's as simple as it gets.
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I'm also surprised by the figures, but in a good way. This is a fine example why the best Korean players left sc2 and revived the brood war scene. People in Korea want to watch brood war more and they want to watch these players produce awesome games (along with Britney walking randomly on the streets). I get Qikz's comment too, it's a bit hard to understand how to successfully entertain to make such a living, but it's a result of someone's unique effort. Nice presentation of the information btw, thank you!
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On March 10 2023 22:04 MeSaber wrote:Show nested quote +On March 09 2023 17:15 Qikz wrote:On March 09 2023 15:34 MeSaber wrote:
Without capitalism everyone would be sitting on their asses doing nothing. It incentivize creativity and innovation.
I... I'm not going to even attempt to argue with this but this is just completely wrong. Good argument.
You didn't make a reasonable argument in the first place. Money was literally invented to make trading easier, so clearly before money people were already working and not sitting on their asses.
A side effect of money is excessive accumulation, without money it would not be possible for a streamer to trade their entertainment for so much stuff, like a single person wouldn't give you a house just for being fun to watch, but money allows that.
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I actually want to argue that the top pros in BroodWar deserve better. I mean you are the top top in a very hard game, and to be on that level for long is just amazing and harsh on the body and mind. Also some of them i bet are funny and just interesting to watch and listen to(sorry i do not understand korean).
I really like the fact that they get "good" money for their efforts. Do not understand the hate(if its hate?). Its amazing to me. I couldnt even dream about this when i was playing broodwar in the 90s. I mean the game is still alive and kicking lol...
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EPT![[image loading]](https://i.imgur.com/yrAmX9Q.png)
![[image loading]](https://i.imgur.com/zNzNmsv.png)
)![[image loading]](https://i.imgur.com/rHdTJ8u.png)
