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Twitch (service)

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Twitch is a leading live-streaming platform primarily focused on video game[2] content. Founded as a spin-off from Justin.tv in 2011 by Justin Kan and Emmett Shear, Twitch has grown exponentially, attracting millions of unique visitors monthly. It’s renowned for being the most popular platform for e-sports streaming. The service has innovated with features like ‘Cheering’ and ‘Twitch Prime’, which provide a richer user experience[1]. Twitch has also made significant acquisitions, such as GoodGame Agency and ClipMine, to enhance its offerings. It’s also known for its partnerships and exclusivity deals with high-profile streamers. Despite facing challenges like security[3] breaches and market exits, Twitch continues to dominate the live content market, expanding into non-gaming content like music and live performances.

Terms definitions
1. ↑ user experience. User Experience (UX) is a broad term that encompasses every aspect of an end-user's interaction with a company, its services, or its products. This includes users' perceptions and responses, both emotional and cognitive, during and after the use of a system, product, or service. User Experience also involves users' beliefs, preferences, and behaviors. While usability, a component of UX, focuses on the practical aspects of a system, UX incorporates a holistic view of system use. User experience is a vital factor in increasing brand loyalty and customer base growth. Its history dates back to the Machine Age, with notable contributions from figures like Frederick Winslow Taylor, Henry Ford, and Donald Norman. Today, technology advancements continue to shape and expand the field.Developer Experience (DX) is the analog of UX for software developers. It represents the experience developers have with the tools, processes, and software they use in their work. A high-quality DX can significantly impact the overall user experience, thus contributing to the success of the product. The importance of DX is increasingly recognized in the field of software services, where ease of use can serve as a key market differentiator. This concept has been explored by various authors and researchers, and it's also emphasized in international standards like ISO 9241-210, which advocates for human-centered design.
2. ↑ video game. A video game is an interactive digital entertainment medium where players engage with a virtual environment displayed on a screen. Originating in the 1940s and 1950s, video games have evolved through various platforms, including arcade machines, home consoles, personal computers (PCs), mobile devices, and virtual reality systems. They constitute a significant sector in the global market, influencing electronics design and innovation. Video game development is a complex process involving teamwork across various disciplines and collaboration among developers, publishers, distributors, and retailers. These games span different genres and styles, catering to a diverse audience. They also play a role in education, offering a unique learning environment and presenting historical content in an interactive manner. Despite their entertainment purpose, video games sometimes stir debates about their definition and boundaries.
Twitch (service) (Wikipedia)

Twitch is an American video live-streaming service that focuses on video game live streaming, including broadcasts of esports competitions, in addition to offering music broadcasts, creative content, and "in real life" streams. Twitch is operated by Twitch Interactive, a subsidiary of Amazon It was introduced in June 2011 as a spin-off of the general-interest streaming platform Justin.tv. Content on the site can be viewed either live or via video on demand. The games shown on Twitch's current homepage are listed according to audience preference and include genres such as real-time strategy games (RTS), fighting games, racing games, and first-person shooters.

Twitch
Screenshot
Homepage in February 2023
Type of businessSubsidiary
Type of site
Predecessor(s)Justin.tv
Area servedWorldwide
Founder(s)
Key people
ParentAmazon
URLtwitch.tv
CommercialYes
RegistrationOptional
LaunchedJune 6, 2011; 12 years ago (2011-06-06)
Current statusActive
ASN
  • 46489

The popularity of Twitch eclipsed that of its general-interest counterpart. In October 2013, the website had 45 million unique viewers, and by February 2014, it was considered the fourth-largest source of peak Internet traffic in the United States. At the same time, Justin.tv's parent company was re-branded as Twitch Interactive to represent the shift in focus—Justin.tv was shut down in August 2014. That month, the service was acquired by Amazon for US$970 million, which later led to the introduction of synergies with the company's subscription service Amazon Prime.

By 2015, Twitch had more than 100 million viewers per month. In 2017, Twitch remained the leading live-streaming video service for video games in the US, and had an advantage over YouTube Gaming, which shut down its standalone app in May 2019. As of February 2020, it had three million broadcasters monthly and 15 million daily active users, with 1.4 million average concurrent users. As of May 2018, Twitch had over 27,000 partner channels. As of October 2023, Twitch was the 37th-most-visited website in the world with 20.26% of its traffic coming from the United States, followed by Germany with 7.08% and South Korea with 5.49%. In late 2023, Twitch announced that they would stop operating in South Korea in 2024 because of its network fee policy, citing prohibitive costs.

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