YouTube Gaming, not that big of a threat to Twitch
YouTube Gaming hit the web after a long summer wait and a lot of hype from the company. Google tried to buy Twitch, literally this time last year, but instead Twitch was bought by Amazon. The first impression of YouTube Gaming is it already has a lot of content from well know content creators, and is very well designed. I love the look of YouTube Gaming compared to Twitch. Twitch still has the upper hand over Google’s alternative which is the easy to use apps on PS4 and Xbox One.
Twitch may have viable competition from YouTube Gaming, but Google will have a lot of questions to answer along with a lot of convincing for people to come over to an unproven platform. Twitch has a partner program to monetize streams which can be a huge cash flow for streamers. YouTube hasn’t announced any plans for a monetization of the live streams which could spell trouble for many content creators who have a source of revenue from Twitch.
The design and feel of YouTube Gaming is easy to use, full of great content, and backed by a network with millions of viewers already on YouTube. The company borrowed many features from Twitch, but mixed it with many features from YouTube. The company does have a DVR that allows viewers to pause, shift time, and record live game play for hours. Twitch allows you to store game play for a limited time, but export live streams directly to YouTube.
Streaming to YouTube Gaming is still a little painful and complicated for many. The service requires encoding software and a PVR to stream from a console. This makes Twitch the best free and easy service to stream gameplay from any device. YouTube has hardware partners and content partners to allow streaming but it’s not that easy to stream at any time or on any device. Twitch allows anyone with a console and an app to stream, while YouTube needs a device that cost upwards of $15o.
YouTube Gaming may attract big names and millions of views, but Twitch may keep the small time streamers with small budgets happier. Tell us what you think of YouTube Gaming in the comments down below!
Also download the iOS and Android app for YouTube Gaming, and check the site out on the web, gaming.youtube.com