One billion dollars. That’s the reported price Google is willing to pay to get Twitch, the biggest real-time game-streaming platform, into its digital empire. The deal has yet to become official, but the industry is already buzzing about all its implications. Twitch provides the players with platform to broadcast their gameplay sessions on PC, Xbox One, or PlayStation 4 live to online viewers, building a community of over 50 million of monthly active gamers around the world, which would provide Google with a enormous advertising opportunity. Furthermore, this billion-dollar deal, if confirmed, would not only validate the emerging market of live-streamed gameplay, but also seem to signal an upcoming transformation of YouTube’s current streaming model. It’s an acquisition that could potentially upend the status quo of OtT video market, bringing Twitch’s live-streaming model into the mix.
Update : In an interesting turn of events, Amazon has closed a deal to buy Twitch for $970 million. — Aug. 25, 2014
