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Report: Google Purchasing Twitch For $1 Billion
A new report, citing sources with direct knowledge of the deal, claims that Google is set to purchase the game livestreaming service Twitch.
VentureBeat's veteran tech reporter Dean Takahashi broke the story, writing that his reported came from "confirmed sources familiar with the matter." An exact announcement date and price are not confirmed, but the figure will be around $1 billion. Google acquired YouTube for $1.65 billion in 2006.
Twitch has been phenomenally successful in letting gamers broadcast their own gameplay session over the Internet, and has recently expanded on to consoles with its PlayStation 4 and Xbox One apps. Twitch has 50 million monthly active users.
We will update this story as more developments come to light. This story does follow recent rumors that were published in the Wall Street Journal, lending more credence to this new report.
[Source: VentureBeat]
Our Take:
Given this story's source, I'd lay money that it's true. It also makes a lot of sense for Google, a company that is not shy when it comes to buying up potential sources of income. Twitch also represents one of the only true competitors for its YouTube service in the video game space.
It will be interesting to see how the Twitch community reacts to the news (I'm gonna go out on a limb and guess "negatively"). It will also raise questions about whether Twitch will continue on with business as usual or be rolled into YouTube in some way.
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