Twitch, the live-streaming platform acquired by Amazon 10 years ago for $1 billion, has fallen on hard times. Despite two billion annual income, the service operates at a loss. Internal problems, increased competition and doubts about the prospects of the live broadcast format itself call into question the future of Twitch, writes Business Insider.
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Amazon is disappointed with its investment in streaming platform Twitch, which it acquired in 2014. The initial hope was that Twitch would become “the next YouTube or Instagram✴” and a fast-growing service that would skyrocket in popularity and profitability after joining a major tech platform. However, these hopes were not realized. Twitch is losing money and its user base growth appears to have stalled.
Trying to understand the issue, Business Insider, citing the WSJ, notes that despite the fact that Amazon laid off a third of Twitch employees this year, the service’s problems may be associated not only with internal factors, but also with the characteristics of the streaming market as a whole, since It remains unclear how large an audience is willing to regularly watch video game livestreams and other content on Twitch.
At the same time, the streaming industry itself continues to develop. Content creators are now using various platforms, including TikTok and YouTube, which offer better monetization terms. For example, YouTube has made it easier to cut live broadcasts into short clips that are easier to monetize.
Despite Twitch’s technological advantage in streaming, the platform has failed to take full advantage of its rise in popularity. According to experts, Twitch is still perceived as “YouTube’s little brother” and has failed to take a significant place in modern digital culture.