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Posted by AGORACOM-JC at 9:15 PM on Sunday, April 14th, 2019

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Twitch’s Head of Esports on the Trends Driving Viewer Engagement

  • 2018 was a stellar year for Twitch .
  • According to Twitchtracker, the streaming service grew its average concurrent viewers by 43% to cross the one million average across the entire year, while streamers chasing the dream of Twitch stardom grew by 70% to 3.4M broadcasters per month.

From Fortnite’s  breakout success and Tyler ‘Ninja’ Blevin’s rise to mainstream celebrity status, to Overwatch  driving new styles of interactive engagement with fans – the year was about a lot more than just seeing the statistics continue to climb. It redefined the trends we thought we knew about what streaming is all about and how esports builds its fan dynamics through real-time interactions.

“Battle Royale games are highly competitive and easy to follow. They translate very well to Twitch.”

It also saw a clash of the traditions of team-based esports with the trend of viewers falling in love with Battle Royale as their favorite game genre to watch.

“Battle Royale games are highly competitive and easy to follow. They translate very well to Twitch,” Justin Dellario, head of esports at Twitch, told The Esports Observer. “Twitch viewers thrive on live, shared moments and there is no shortage of that spontaneity in Battle Royale games.

“Best of all, Battle Royale games are simple – fight to be the last one standing – so nobody is left in the dark when they see a best play or big win.”

Dellario joined Twitch in February 2016, and since that time the wider entertainment industry has woken up to the idea that game streaming isn’t a sideshow but an actual competitor to its living room dominance. According to Dellario, the strength of Twitch is its community spirit.

Credit: EA Games

“That’s what today’s young audiences crave: the ability to interact and even influence what they watch. Twitch gives them that opportunity to do so with their fellow fans, their community,” said Dellario.

“People watch Twitch for shared moments, something to enjoy with like-minded people. That’s no different than sports fans gathering at a bar or a friend’s living room to watch a game. How people interact with content and content creators on Twitch builds a live, shared, interactive viewing experience that provides that exact atmosphere from the comfort of wherever you are watching from. That’s what we call multiplayer entertainment – unique, live, unpredictable experiences created by the shared interactions of millions.”

“It’s important to note that while viewer rewards play a part in driving viewership, they also play a part in driving engagement and play time.” 

That blend of interactivity and community is also represented in game developers delivering rewards to viewers, particularly around esports tournaments, as part of using the Twitch platform. And Dellario sees them shifting from a viewer incentive to a community expectation.

“It’s important to note that while viewer rewards play a part in driving viewership, they also play a part in driving engagement and play time,” Dellario said. “They cause players to return to the game to use the rewards, continue to have experiences that keep them tied to the game, and ultimately help drive them back to watching again to complete the loop.

“Developers recognize the need to strengthen this bond with their communities inside and outside of the game.”

One of the deepest integrations between the Twitch fan experience and an esports competition was the launch of the Overwatch League All-Access Pass. For a one-off season subscription price (unique compared to Twitch’s typical monthly subscription system) a viewer gets a special viewing experience with real-time game statistics, options to watch specific player cameras, or combine multiple views to create their own custom viewing experience.

Credit: Blizzard

“We are always looking for ways to enhance the esports broadcast experience for our partners and viewing experience for the fans,” said Dellario. “The Overwatch League All-Access Pass was the result of our work with Blizzard to develop new methods of engagement and learning from the community on how to provide more control in how they watch and experience matches.”

The top personalities on Twitch now single-handedly command audiences just as big, or bigger, than the biggest weekly esports leagues on the platform. So some events are finding new ways to get the best of both worlds through one of the newest trends on Twitch – co-streaming.

“We just saw Ninja gather a large viewing party for Thursday Night Football, bringing the program to people who may not otherwise watch it…”

“Many of our top streamers got successful because they are entertaining commentators of their own gameplay. Therefore, letting an online personality present the content in a way that resonates with their viewer community is a perfect way to find a new audience,” said Dellario.

“Twitch viewers enjoy their content more when they get to enjoy it with commentary from their friends, and especially their favorite personalities. What that creates is a unique viewing experience they can’t get from watching something alone.”

This co-streaming concept is even extending beyond the realm of esports and gaining the attention of traditional sports leagues as well.

“We just saw Ninja gather a large viewing party for Thursday Night Football, bringing the program to people who may not otherwise watch it – cord cutters and cord nevers,” Dellario said.

Credit: Twitch

“That’s, of course, where you might run into challenges. Co-streaming counts on getting the right personalities who can get creative in a way that compliments your content and gets their viewers interested. However, we were able to secure that with the NFL by handpicking which streamers got rights to co-stream Thursday Night Football.”

For Dellario, one of the biggest lessons in his three years at Twitch has been seeing streaming and esports “go hand-in-hand” as commentary, personality, and community make Twitch the preferred place to watch.

With Twitch Rivals, we are further fostering the relationship between esports and streaming.”

“People don’t just turn out for the game. People turn out for personalities in esports, and we have proven that esports help boost personalities through Twitch Rivals,” Dellario said.

“Twitch Rivals is a series of competitions organized by Twitch, which pits our top and growing streamers against each other in varying formats of competition and challenges spanning all types of popular and budding game categories.”

Rivals events use a central broadcast hub as a base for viewers to tune in and catch the big picture coverage, while all participants are streaming their personal point-of-view where their fans – or new fans – can tune in.

“This helps streamers grow their channels while maintaining their traditional programming and broadcast times. With Twitch Rivals, we are further fostering the relationship between esports and streaming,” Dellario said.

Want to hear more about Twitch’s role in the esports industry? Justin Dellario will be a speaker at the HIVE esports business conference in Berlin on April 11, 2019. The first international esports business conference in Europe’s capital of esports. An unprecedented conference format featuring thought leaders of industries adjacent to esports sharing their insights. Click here to reserve your seat!

This interview was conducted by Trent Murray.

Source: https://esportsobserver.com/twitch-hive-berlin-interview/

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