Amazon buys video game streaming site Twitch

In something of a surprise move, online retailer and tech giant Amazon has bought game streaming site Twitch for nearly one billion US dollars.

It comes after Twitch was reportedly in talks with Google-owned YouTube about a possible acquisition earlier in the year. But now Amazon has stepped in.

Twitch allows users to broadcast their video games online as they play them, as well as watch others play. A recent experiment saw two college students use motion sensors so that their goldfish could play Pokemon. The feed gained more than one million viewers.

A Twitch stream of the Pokemon-playing fish (PA)

Industry experts say they believe the purchase by Amazon, which acquired UK-based LoveFilm three years ago, is the company’s attempt to take on other streaming services like YouTube and Netflix, as well as take greater steps into the gaming market in order to challenge all-encompassing tech companies like Apple and Google.

In a statement on the purchase, Amazon’s chief executive Jeff Bezos said: “Broadcasting and watching gameplay is a global phenomenon and Twitch has built a platform that brings together tens of millions of people who watch billions of minutes of games each month.”

FIFA 14 being played on Twitch (PA)

The buyout means Amazon will now have access to a huge amount of gamers, with links to products on Amazon embedded on streaming pages one possible new feature being discussed on social media.