The following is a press release from Business Wire.
SAN FRANCISCO, CA – September 25, 2015 – Twitch, the world’s leading social
video platform and community for gamers, kicked off TwitchCon 2015 with a
keynote from CEO/Founder Emmett Shear, along with Twitch’s Director of
Programming, Marcus “djWHEAT” Graham. The two painted a detailed picture of
the live broadcasting platform’s history to its ongoing evolution. Upcoming
features include video uploads, an HTML5 video player and new ways to chat.
Also included were announcements related to industry partners, like
PlayStation’s dedicated Twitch viewing app for all its platforms,
Gameshow’s cutting edge broadcasting software, and a reveal of new content
for *StarCraft II: Legacy of the Void*.
“The Twitch community shapes everything we do through the creative new ways
they use our platform, through their feedback, and through the great videos
and hilarious chat messages we see every day,” said Emmett Shear,
CEO/Founder, Twitch. “All of the features we announced today, from our
HTML5 plans to our video upload system, are inspired by our awesome
community of broadcasters, viewers, and chatters. We want them to know
we’re always listening, and we can’t wait to meet them in person at
TwitchCon.”
Twitch announced the following improvements to its social video platform:
● Video Uploads: For the first time, broadcasters will be able to
use a simple web interface to upload their videos to Twitch without having
to stream them live first. Coming in early 2016.
● HTML5 Video Player: While some broadcasters currently have access
to the new player with HTML controls, Twitch will be rolling out a full
HTML5 player. Coming in early 2016.
● Customizable Thumbnails: Twitch is enabling customizable
thumbnails for broadcasters to use with past broadcasts and highlights.
This will ensure broadcasters have full control over how they present their
content.
● Whispers Update: Twitch’s real-time messaging functionality is
being separated from the main flow of chat to make whisper messages easier
to follow and respond to. Whispers’ history is also persistent so users can
return to their whispers conversation any time–even as they move from one
channel to another. Whispers will also be available on mobile, so messages
started on the web can continue when users are on the go. Coming in October.
● 24/7 Playlists: Broadcasters will be able to create a playlist of
their best pre-recorded content with a simple drag-and-drop interface. They
can use archived live broadcasts or highlights, and easily reorder and
remove videos as well. Upon activation, the video will start streaming it
to the broadcaster’s channel. Coming in Fall 2015.
The keynote presentation also featured several announcements related to its
industry partners.
● PlayStation App: When PlayStation®4 (PS4™) launched in 2013, it
offered the ability to easily live broadcast PS4 gameplay sessions using
the SHARE button on the DualShock®4 wireless controller and view live PS4
gameplay sessions via Live from PlayStation®. Today it was announced that a
dedicated Twitch app will be available on multiple PlayStation platforms in
the Americas starting with PS4 next month and followed by PlayStation®3,
PlayStation®Vita and PlayStation®TV. The app will make it even easier to
watch game streams and to follow favorite broadcasters on PS4.
● Gameshow: Gameshow is cross-platform, livestreaming production
software that lets broadcasters easily set up and produce the highest
quality streams, with beautiful graphic templates designed for specific
games, unlimited shots, dynamic editing, live switching, green screen
technology, and built-in interactive widgets. With Gameshow, broadcasters
can simplify the process of creating a consistent, branded game stream,
which helps them build their community, build their brand and make their
streams worth watching.
TwitchCon 2015 is taking place September 25th-26th at the Moscone West
convention center in San Francisco and is the first ever convention
dedicated to Twitch’s community of partners, broadcasters, and viewers. To
be kept in the loop with all TwitchCon news, follow the TwitchCon Twitter
feed https://twitter.com/twitchconsf or tune into live TwitchCon content
via the TwitchCon Event Page
For general Twitch news, visit the Twitch blog http://blog.twitch.tv/, https://twitter.com/Twitch, Instagram https://instagram.com/twitch and https://www.facebook.com/Twitch pages.
About Twitch
Twitch is the world’s leading social video platform and community for
gamers. Each month, more than 100 million community members gather to watch
and talk about video games with more than 1.7 million broadcasters.
Twitch’s video platform is the backbone of both live and on-demand
distribution for the entire video game ecosystem. This includes game
developers, publishers, media outlets, events, user generated content, and
the entire esports scene. For more information visit the Twitch website blog.
