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YouTube to acquire Twitch for $1bn

May 19, 2014

Video game streaming service Twitch looks set to be acquired by YouTube for about $1 billion.

Twitch was launched in June 2011 by Justin.tv co-founders Justin Kan and Emmett Shear and focuses on live video game streams and eSports broadcasting. The site boasts more than 45 million visitors per month and topped 1 million monthly broadcasters earlier this year, which the company attributed in part to the service’s availability on PlayStation 4. Twitch streaming was added to Xbox One in March.

Reports indicate that YouTube is preparing for US regulators to challenge the Twitch acquisition deal and whether the buyout raises anticompetitive concerns regarding online video.

According to Variety, it’s already a done deal, and an official announcement is imminent.

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