Twitch is an American online platform, established in 2011, where users can watch live-streamed video game footage. It has become the world's largest video game streaming service, with 31 million daily visitors. Originally a spin-off of Justin.tv, Twitch allows anyone with the hardware and software to stream, and successful streamers can become site partners and earn revenue through advertising. Amazon acquired Twitch in 2014 for $970 million. In addition to gaming, Twitch hosts esports competitions, broadcasts professional sports, and streams charity events.

How do streamers interact with viewers on Twitch?

Livestreaming on platforms like Twitch fosters social interaction, giving content creators the chance to connect with a global audience. Streamers can be seen, heard, and receive instant feedback, which helps them improve their skills. The appeal of livestreaming lies in its similarity to reality TV, where spontaneous content and real-time engagement promote a sense of community.

What types of content can you find on Twitch besides video games?

Twitch is an American online live streaming platform founded in 2011 where users can watch video game footage. While it is known as the largest video game streaming platform, Twitch also has alternate categories for live-action chat and tabletop game streams. Twitch is a common venue for esports competitions and has integrated professional sports onto its platform, such as the NBA G League. Twitch also hosts a number of charity streams; in 2020, streamers raised more than $80 million for various charities.

How do people make money on Twitch?

Twitch streamers can make money in several ways. If streamers are successful enough, they can become site partners and earn revenue through advertising. Viewers can also purchase "Bits" that they can give to streamers. Twitch earns revenue from subscriptions and Bits donations, taking a portion of these transactions. Twitch is also a common venue for esports competitions, which bring in millions of viewers.

What impact has Twitch had on gaming and online communities?

Twitch, founded in 2011, has significantly impacted both gaming and online communities by becoming the world's largest video game streaming platform, with 31 million daily visitors. It allows anyone with the hardware and software to stream, enabling successful streamers to earn revenue through advertising. Twitch is a common venue for esports competitions, drawing millions of viewers. The platform has also integrated professional sports and hosts charity streams, raising millions for various charities. TwitchCon, an annual gathering of streamers and viewers, highlights its popularity. The emergence of Twitch in 2011 paved the way for other platforms like YouTube, Twitter, Facebook, and Instagram to introduce livestreaming capabilities.

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Twitch

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Top Questions

What is Twitch?
Twitch is an American online platform, established in 2011, where users can watch live-streamed video game footage. It has become the world's largest video game streaming service, with 31 million daily visitors.

Originally a spin-off of Justin.tv, Twitch allows anyone with the hardware and software to stream, and successful streamers can become site partners and earn revenue through advertising. Amazon acquired Twitch in 2014 for $970 million. In addition to gaming, Twitch hosts esports competitions, broadcasts professional sports, and streams charity events.
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1. Twitch
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What do people use Twitch for?
Twitch is an American online live streaming platform where users can watch video game footage. Founded in 2011, it has grown into the largest video game streaming platform globally, with an average of 31 million daily visitors.

People use Twitch to watch individual streams differentiated by the video game being streamed, though there are alternate categories for live-action chat and tabletop game streams. Twitch is also a common venue for esports competitions in games such as League of Legends and Dota 2, which bring in millions of viewers. The platform has also integrated professional sports and hosts charity streams.
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1. Twitch
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How do streamers interact with viewers on Twitch?
Livestreaming on platforms like Twitch fosters social interaction, giving content creators the chance to connect with a global audience. Streamers can be seen, heard, and receive instant feedback, which helps them improve their skills. The appeal of livestreaming lies in its similarity to reality TV, where spontaneous content and real-time engagement promote a sense of community.
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1. livestreaming: Advantages and concerns
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What types of content can you find on Twitch besides video games?
Twitch is an American online live streaming platform founded in 2011 where users can watch video game footage. While it is known as the largest video game streaming platform, Twitch also has alternate categories for live-action chat and tabletop game streams. Twitch is a common venue for esports competitions and has integrated professional sports onto its platform, such as the NBA G League. Twitch also hosts a number of charity streams; in 2020, streamers raised more than $80 million for various charities.
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1. Twitch
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How do people make money on Twitch?
Twitch streamers can make money in several ways. If streamers are successful enough, they can become site partners and earn revenue through advertising. Viewers can also purchase "Bits" that they can give to streamers. Twitch earns revenue from subscriptions and Bits donations, taking a portion of these transactions. Twitch is also a common venue for esports competitions, which bring in millions of viewers.
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1. Twitch
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What impact has Twitch had on gaming and online communities?
Twitch, founded in 2011, has significantly impacted both gaming and online communities by becoming the world's largest video game streaming platform, with 31 million daily visitors. It allows anyone with the hardware and software to stream, enabling successful streamers to earn revenue through advertising.

Twitch is a common venue for esports competitions, drawing millions of viewers. The platform has also integrated professional sports and hosts charity streams, raising millions for various charities. TwitchCon, an annual gathering of streamers and viewers, highlights its popularity. The emergence of Twitch in 2011 paved the way for other platforms like YouTube, Twitter, Facebook, and Instagram to introduce livestreaming capabilities.
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Created from Britannica articles using AI. AI can make mistakes, so verify using Britannica articles.

Twitch, American online live streaming platform where users can watch video game footage. Founded in 2011, Twitch has become the largest video game streaming platform in the world, having an average of 31 million visitors daily. Twitch is a subsidiary of Amazon, which bought the platform in August 2014 for $970 million. Twitch’s main headquarters are in San Francisco.

Twitch’s predecessor was a start-up founded by entrepreneur and Web developer Justin Kan in 2007 after he had recently graduated from Yale University. The service was named Justin.tv after the founder, who, with the help of friends Emmett Shear, Michael Seibel, and Kyle Vogt, began to stream his life nonstop, hoping to imitate a Big Brother-style reality show. Justin.tv expanded over the next year to allow anyone with an adequate setup to live stream on the site. By 2008 Justin.tv had accumulated 1 million registered users. Content on the website was divided into categories, including one for video games. Gaming soon eclipsed the lifestyle content on Justin.tv, pushing its owners, by then just Kan and Shear, to create a spinoff site called Twitch, which officially launched in June 2011.

Twitch operated on the premise that anyone could live stream if they had the requisite hardware and could operate the site’s software. These “streamers,” as they would come to be called, could become site partners if they were successful enough and, in turn, earn revenue through advertising. The platform was an instant hit. By 2014 Twitch, supported by over $35 million in venture capital investment, was profitable, had established its headquarters in San Francisco’s financial district, and had over 100 employees. That same year the site commanded 1.8 percent of peak Internet traffic in the United States, behind only Netflix, Google, and Apple. (Kan shut down Justin.tv in 2014, aiming to focus on Twitch.)

In May 2014 Google attempted to acquire Twitch for $1 billion. Amazon entered a $970 million bid in August of the same year, citing its desire to enter the video game broadcasting industry. Twitch’s leaders opted for Amazon, believing the e-commerce giant would offer the streaming site more autonomy. They also felt that, because Google owned the video-sharing platform YouTube, Twitch would be forced into a secondary role. It was later reported that Google had dropped out of the deal over concerns about antitrust laws.

In 2016 Twitch added a feature that allowed viewers to purchase “Bits,” which they could in turn give to streamers. That same year the company introduced an automated chat moderation tool that filtered out abusive content. Twitch had long had a “Partner Program” that prevented its most successful steamers from broadcasting their content on other websites, but Twitch abandoned the exclusivity agreement in 2022. The site operated under Shear until he stepped down as chief executive officer in March 2023 and was replaced by longtime Twitch president Dan Clancy.

Twitch has more than 7 million unique active streamers as of 2023. Individual streams are differentiated by the video game being streamed, though there are alternate categories for live-action chat and tabletop game streams. The home page presents site visitors with a selection of featured streams and short clips from recorded streams. Each stream has a live-chat function, in which viewers may communicate using a variety of animated icons, or “emotes.” Twitch earns revenue in multiple ways. Advertisements are the first and primary source of revenue. Twitch also takes a portion from subscriptions and Bits donations.

Twitch is a common venue for esports competitions in games such as League of Legends and Dota 2, which remain two of the most popular multiplayer online battle arena (MOBA) games on the site. These tournaments bring in millions of viewers. Twitch has also integrated professional sports onto its platform. For example, the NBA G League regularly broadcasts games on the site. Twitch hosts a number of charity streams as well; in 2020 alone streamers raised more than $80 million for various charities. Twitch’s popularity is showcased at TwitchCon, an annual gathering of streamers and viewers that attracts tens of thousands of attendees.

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