In a record year, people on Twitch streamed 6 billion hours of content.
Six billion hours averages out to about 46 minutes for every person on Earth. 15 million people per day who get their entertainment from the gaming-centric streaming service.
Twitch relies on its members to create the content people are watching. More than 150,000 Twitch Affiliates stream their gameplay and produce vlogs. Another 27,000 Partners create high volume channels. All of them get paid for their efforts through a range of monetization sources.
eSports burst into the mainstream over the past twelve months. Most recently, the ELEAGUE’s Counter-Strike tournament in Boston had more than a million people watching at the same time on Twitch. Not exactly Super Bowl numbers, but it’s an eye-catching stat for sponsors.
Prepare for Battle
Twitch is attracting attention from its competitors, as well. Microsoft has been chasing Twitch ever since it launched its own game streaming service more than a year ago. Last month Mixer introduced the same kind of sales commissions and tipping features Twitch uses to pay its creators.
Even Facebook is getting into the game with an exclusive deal to live stream certain eSports tournaments.
Microsoft and Facebook are formidable competitors for Twitch. However, mighty Amazon bought Twitch in 2014– so Twitch has all the muscle it needs to stay competitive.
Game streams, eSports and related content have emerged from the fringe to become a mainstream alternative to traditional television. Expect the numbers for the next twelve months to far surpass Twitch’s breakthrough 2017.
Chris Casper is a former tech industry product manager who escaped from California for New Mexico. Now he writes about science and tech while searching for the perfect green chile sauce.
