Feb 2, 2019 - Technology

Twitch's success is yet another example of Amazon's dominance

Ina Fried

Collage illustration of the Overwatch character Tracer, laid on top of a late 80s photograph of a video game tournament. — Illustration: Aïda Amer/Axios

It was a bit of a head-scratcher when Amazon announced it was spending nearly $1 billion in cash to buy Twitch, but it turns out that once again the retailer was ahead of the curve, realizing that a lot of people wanted to watch other people play video games.

Why it matters: Twitch is now the most popular streaming platform for gamers, with 15 million daily users watching 2.2 million broadcasters. (80% of them are male.)

It has invested in going after highly sought-after gaming events and influencers that have also turned into big money for streamers.
It also leverages a Twitch Prime service that gives each person who connects an Amazon Prime account a single subscription to use on any Twitch channel.

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Twitch's success is yet another example of Amazon's dominance

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