Interactive Live Video — a New Genre with a New Business Model
Right now at this very moment, there are more people engaging with game streams on Twitch and YouTube than there are people watching HBO, Netflix and ESPN combined. Those spectators are also diginatives, and about a third of them use adblock which has spiraled them out of reach for many advertisers. And there is no stopping, the number of live streamers is growing from 15M this year to over 19M by the end of 2019.
Unlike TV channels these social platforms support real-time chat and that means they are interactive by nature. This allows viewers to join a collective real-time experience where they can engage with the streamer together with the community.
Once people join the collective experience, laid-back viewers become active participants. And once you are able to activate your audience, you can integrate their activity into being part of your business model.
Alibaba and HQ are already showcasing highly successful business models that allow them to convert live engagement into direct revenue. Alibaba has started a retail revolution by allowing viewers to purchase anything they see on screen with See-Now-Buy-Now shows, while HQ is engaging millions of people with their twice-a-day game shows all over the world and charging millions from brands to become part of the experience.
Streamlabs — App Store for Streamers!
Streamers are powered by free software, like Streamlabs OBS that grew in just 9 months from 0% market share to over 40% of Twitch streamers (1,2M MAU in September 2018). In November 2018 Streamlabs launched an app store for 3rd party developers to help streamers push the boundaries of live streaming even further.
We are honored to be one of the launch partners of the Streamlabs app store. We’ve now launched our first apps:
Our goal is to change entertainment formats from being an expensive luxury for big brands and TV channels, into a solution that is available in an app store for all streamers. This should help streamers conquer an even bigger piece of the fast growing overall live streaming industry ($10,1bn in 2018) and provide sponsors a new way to win the attention of diginatives.
Welcome to the future,
Team SuperMashApp
