It’s been nearly two months since Variety and The Wall Street Journal reported Google was “in talks” to purchase popular game streaming site Twitch.tv for a billion dollars. According to VentureBeat, we can now upgrade the status from ‘in talks’ to ‘sealed deal’.
The report is unconfirmed currently, with VentureBeat only citing “sources familiar with the matter,” but it’d hardly be a surprise if true. Details are scarce, though. Neither company has spoken on the matter and there’s no news of whether just Twitch or all of the empire formerly known as Justin.tv is also part of the deal. We also don’t know whether YouTube’s own streaming service would continue to function separately from Google.
There will be some outcry – especially if Google+ membership becomes necessary to leave comments as per YouTube – but Google’s acquisition of Twitch is not necessarily bad for streamers. Despite Google’s somewhat overbearing attitude towards copyright enforcement and Google+, there’s no denying that Google has both the cash and knowledge to upgrade Twitch’s infrastructure, turn it into a more robust service, and pay more streamers for their work.
Regardless, it’s an enormous opportunity for Google. While YouTube already owns the uploaded video landscape, streaming is increasingly popular for both entertainment and e-sports. For instance, Valve’s Dota 2 tournament The International was streamed on Twitch (and elsewhere) this past weekend, with a prize pool of $10 million on the line – up from $3 million the year before. This is a rapidly expanding industry, and Google’s smart to try and take hold.
TechHive
Subscribers 0
Fans 0
Followers 0
Followers