With over 800 million users, there’s no denying that YouTube is a powerful platform. YouTube has been strategically targeting gamers and streamers to create a larger community, and the results have been impressive.
People who watch gaming videos are one of the most engaged communities on the internet, and they spend an average of 2.5 hours per day viewing gaming content. Perhaps more importantly, this audience is extremely influential. A study by Newzoo revealed that 3 out of 4 gamers consider themselves influencers for their friends and family. These people aren’t just content consumers; they actively promote games to their social network, and the number of gamers who do this is growing rapidly.
So let's jump into the 4 ways YouTube is taking over the streaming industry:
#1. YouTube Is The Most Requested Game Demo Platform
Gamers and streamers have long used online video platforms like YouTube to share content and promote games within their communities. They make gameplay videos for other gamers, create walkthroughs, and give tips on how to beat difficult levels. Many game companies now use YouTube as a platform to share their content, including game demos and trailers.
#2. YouTube Has Become The Third Most Popular Gaming Website
YouTube has become the thirdmost popular gaming website in the world, behind only to Twitch and now even more recently Facebook. The video platform is also a place where gamers can find walkthroughs and gameplay videos for their favorite games. Many of these videos are from professional game development studios others are "let's play" style videos.
#3 Streamers are Moving Away From Twitch to YouTube
As the gaming industry grows, we see more and more streamers using YouTube instead of Twitch. Streamers are moving to YouTube because they want to diversify their revenue sources. They’re also hoping to gain more exposure and grow their audience by getting their content in front of a different viewing audience. Moreover, it allows streamers to earn more revenue while not streaming as well as gives streamers more ability to be found in search results. Which leads us to number 4.
#4 YouTube Provides Streamers a Better Way to Be Found
YouTube is taking steps to make sure that streamers have a better way to be found by viewers. Their latest move is including streaming game titles on the search page. YouTube announced that they will now display live streams of games on their search page, alongside the traditional “Videos” and “Channels” results. The company is doing this to help streamers be discovered more easily, which they say is a top request from their community.
While there will always be a great debate as to which platform you should be streaming on, there is no denying YouTube should be #1 or #2 on that list. While it may not boast the number of community features that Twitch has... yet. YouTube has come out and stated they are investing heavily in their streaming platform and 2022 looks to be a year of some major improvements for community growth.
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