This is one of the largest acquisitions in its history. Amazon is preparing to pay some $ 970 million in cash for Twitch, a service that specializes in delivering video games online.
So far the most expensive purchase made by the group Jeff Bezos was the site selling shoes Zappos, paid $ 1.2 billion in 2009 but partly in shares.
A global phenomenon
“ Share and watch video games is a global phenomenon and Twitch has built a platform that brings together tens of millions of people watching billions of minutes of games every month” , said Jeff Bezos on Monday. “ We hope to learn from them and help them create new services more quickly to the gaming community.”
55 million visitors per month
Twitch is a company launched in 2011 and headquartered in San Francisco, which presents itself as the world’s largest broadcasting platform video game streaming (no download online stream). His www.twitch.tv site boasts more than 55 million monthly visitors who come to watch parts carried live by players and comment on their performance.
Twitch also retransmits video game competitions and had This year was a partner in the large living area of E3 in Los Angeles, she had released the press conferences.
Amazon has pulled the rug from under the feet of Google, quoted in the past as a bidding to acquire Twitch. Some media have even recently said that an agreement had been found, which, however, had never been confirmed.
The internet giant did not comment Monday.
Diversify offers
“It makes more sense to buy (the company) for Amazon than Google “, however told AFP Trip Chowdhry, analyst at Global Equities Research, stressing that the group already has an internet broadcasting platform online YouTube.
It evokes “ a very smart acquisition ” for Amazon, because it “ bring him more customers “is access to the” Niche “for video game players and” another service that can provide users of its devices, as an application , “and if necessary use as a gateway to its trading activities.
Amazon, starting with simple online bookseller, has greatly expanded its operations these recent years, particularly in the digital content (eBooks, video and music online) but also in devices (Kindle eReaders and tablets, the Fire Phone smartphone) or the hosting of third party websites.
Competing with Netflix
Amazon was already present in video games with a branch of creation, Amazon Game Studios, reinforced earlier this year with the acquisition of the California studio Double Helix Game. He also built online games with a joystick dedicated to his television decoder Fire TV, launched in the spring. Twitch but also reinforces its distribution services with video capabilities retransmission of live events.
Amazon has been working hard in this market, where it competes with the specialized site Netflix to acquire broadcast rights to TV shows or performing his own original programs.
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