Kick appears to be hesitant to pull the trigger on signing top streamer Dr Disrespect because of the massive $50 million USD price tag he set on himself, as negotiations seem to have come to a standstill earlier this month.
The high-flying live-streaming platform admitted Doc is “one of the most entertaining streamers in the business” and that some staff members have “watched him for years,” said Kick head of product Paulie Chianese in an interview with YouTuber Big E. While Chianese knows the Doc is serious about his self-prescribed price tag, it doesn’t change the fact that “$50 million is $50 million,” which sounds like the platform isn’t totally on board just yet.
It’s not the first time the company has expressed a willingness to sign Dr Disrespect, however. Kick co-founder Eddie Craven said he is a “massive fan” of the two-time when chatting with Jake Lucky back in June. Craven said he would love to work with the Doc and at the time was in talks with his team, but it seems like Kick isn’t willing to meet his demands.
Related: Dr Disrespect slaps mega price tag on him moving to Kick—and Kick is listening
Doc’s $50 million price tag isn’t totally outrageous by any means. The platform has signed a number of popular streamers, including xQc, Adin Ross, and Amouranth, who reportedly signed some of the most lucrative contracts in the industry led by xQc’s $100 million non-exclusive two-year deal. Perhaps the issue is they don’t think he’s worth that much.
Either way, the two-time certainly doesn’t seem too bothered. A contract could make it harder for him to spend time on his video game development studio, and since he is thinking of taking an extended break to focus on it, that might be something he isn’t willing to do.
Dr Disrespect knows his own worth and how valuable his time is, and he’s playing his cards accordingly.
