YouTube has announced that another slew of Twitch-like features are set to help tempt streamers to the video platform including Gifted Memberships and Live Redirect.
Gaming content is part of the very foundation of YouTube, and the video-streaming platform confirmed that over 800 billion views, 90 million hours of live-streamed content, and over 250 million uploads are all dedicated to gaming.
Twitch at least currently remains the go-to destination for dedicated gaming content, but with the addition of new features, YouTube will hope to scoop up those disillusioned with the restrictive practices of Amazon-owned livestreaming service.
Many Twitch creators already use YouTube as a repository of highlights and clips. The new changes are obvious attempts to tempt creators to stick with YouTube and provide an end-to-end experience for gaming fans.
Although not yet available, the company confirmed that “Gifted Memberships” and “Live Redirect for Gaming” will come to YouTube creators very soon:
We’re currently working on upcoming products and features to meet these demands and others–including Gifted Memberships, as well as Live Redirect for Gaming, which will let you seamlessly send your viewers directly to another livestream once yours ends.
“Gifted Memberships” appear to work in much the same way that the current Memberships system works on YouTube. This paid-for tier allows fans to support content creators with paid-for tiers that provide access to things like added live chat emoticons and special badges when commenting on a specific channel.
Live Redirect for Gaming allows you to seamlessly send your viewers directly to another livestream once yours ends. This sounds very similar to the “host” ability that Twitch streamers have had for several years now. This could help create an even greater sense of community on the platform for gamers, but it’s not quite clear how you’ll be able to select channels or streams to host at this stage.
Alongside Gifted Memberships and Live Redirect, YouTube also confirmed that there will be further exploration into “other perks for YouTueb Gamers through [their] subscription services.” This could include things such as the recent free access to YouTube Premium for Discord Nitro users.
Neither feature is yet available, but YouTube also teased “more updates” are coming to the platform, too.
More on YouTube:
- YouTube appoints Kai Chuk as ‘Podcast Lead’ to manage podcasts hosted on the platform
- YouTube rolls out ‘New to you’ feed with videos outside of your normal recommendations [U]
- YouTube Music is getting a new ‘Now Playing & Recently played’ Material You widget
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