Everything you need to know about Twitch

What is this platform and how does it work?

Twitch has become one of the most popular platforms among video game fans. But if you don't know about this world or have just heard a few things about this streaming site, then Let's learn what Twitch is and how to use this platform of the streaming world.

What is the Twitch platform?

For some time now, there has been a trend among video game fans to share their games through different platforms. And although YouTube is one of the most popular sites among the public that follows this type of content, Twitch is the star video streaming platform focused on gaming fans.

Within Twitch we can find content ranging from eSports broadcasts to users sharing their gaming matches.

The main content of the platform has to do with the world of video games. And this was the reason why the beta version “Twitch.tv” was created in 2011, as a social network in which game lovers could transmit videos related to their passion.

Although as time went by this platform expanded and in 2014, Amazon bought this community that was born for electronic sports players.

Today, Twitch is a social media giant with millions of users who use the platform's streams as a means to earn money, through subscriber donations or donations. Twitch Partner.

The unstoppable growth of Twich

Between 2020 and 2021, the Twich platform had unstoppable growth within the world of streaming and social networks. Its overwhelming success made it a phenomenon in the world of streaming thanks to the functionalities that were gradually included.

The first features that made Twich so popular were the tools that allowed users who visited a streamer to tip their favorite content creator. While streamers could offer their loyal followers a reward of paid broadcasts.

During 2021, Twich positioned itself as the streaming platform with the highest number of visits worldwide, surpassing YouTube Gaming. And in 2020, it reached a daily average of more than 15 million users connected to around four million channels.

How to start using Twitch

Getting started with Twitch is the simplest step of all. You just have to create an account on the platform and complete some basic information to activate your account and follow your favorite channels.

• Username.
• Birthdate.
• Email.

These are some of the information you must fill out to confirm your email and access all the platform's options.

To enter the site you can do so through its website Twitch.tv or download its application for mobile devices. And the platform has various functions and tools that allow you to follow other channels as a viewer or share your broadcast.

Learn about the platform options

As a viewer on Twitch you can follow other users, explore the different channels and view a list of your favorite channels on the left side of the screen. as well as recommendations from other channels that might be of interest to you.

By clicking on any of the channels that are broadcasting at that moment, we will see their transmission, number of viewers and we can take part in the chat to leave comments and opinions.

An important fact to highlight about this platform is that you can switch from a broadcast to explore other options on the site without stopping watching the broadcast you are watching, as it will be displayed in PIP mode to play the current video in a floating window.

In addition to the list of favorite channels, you can use the user search engine located at the bottom to search and add your friends.

On the other hand, in the upper right part, Twitch shows the icon of a crown, which are the weekly rewards that the platform offers when you subscribe to Prime. You can also see your notifications on the bell icon, such as notifications from new subscribers or from the channels you follow.

Another option that you can find when exploring the site is the “Get Bits” button, located to the right of the notification bell. This button allows you to access a rewards system that we can purchase to show your support for your favorite content creators.

Finally, By clicking the profile icon we access the control panel, our channel tools, settings and we can see the number of friends and subscribers we have.

Subscribers and followers on Twitch

One of the main differences between this platform and YouTube is that On Twitch subscriptions are paid.

We can follow a channel, but subscribers pay to access three different levels of benefits. Although There is the Prime Gaming option to get a free subscription per month.

Access to the three levels is not permanent and its cost can be annual or monthly. But it is not necessary to pay to see the platform, since we can become followers of a channel without having to pay for the subscription.

The platform emblems

As subscribers of a channel we can obtain “emblems”, which are a badge or award that can be displayed next to the username when participating in the chat.

The badges are very diverse: for being part of the first subscribers or for having been in the community for a long time. It all depends on the emblems offered by the channel, because content creators are the ones who manage the emblems and customize them from their account control panel.

We can also find emblem ornaments which are a type of award given to level 2 and 3 subscribers.

Virtual Gifts: Bits on Twitch

Bits are a kind of virtual gift that subscribers buy to show support to the creators or reward the content they enjoy so much.

Any user can access this rewards system and send it to the creators of the platform as a “Cheermote”. This means that we are sending a “Cheer”, which is an electronic gift card that is purchased via Paypal or credit card for the amount we want, and that is sent during transmissions through chat.

The prices of each Bit usually vary and range from $3.28 for 300 bits to $336.79 for 25,000 bits. Purchasing bits fills the wallet and then exchanges it for a Cheermote that we give to our favorite content creator.

Another feature that makes chermotees so attractive is the way in which bits can be sent. Being a kind of gift card, we can find different designs to send as animated emoticons or various interactive animations, and choose the exact number of chermotees you want to send.

Top Twitch terms you should know

From streamer to Prime Gaming, there are several Twitch terms that you should know before you start connecting on the platform:

• Streamer: is the term for a content creator who shares their streams and connects with the audience.
• Stream: It consists of the actions performed by the streamer.
• Gamer: He is a person who is fond of playing video games that can be of different types such as Nintendo. PlayStation, PC, among others.
• Gameplay: is an Anglo-Saxon word that has two meanings: the first is “playability” of a video game, while the second refers to the reproduction of a video game with a game that is being transmitted to viewers.
• Prime Gaming: is a Twitch Prime option that allows us to become Premium users and access games, chats with a unique crown emblem, exclusive emoticons, and a free monthly subscription. In addition to other advantages such as free loot for games.

Channel analysis tools

One of the key tools of the channel is the analysis section where we can see viewer statistics, views for live and direct broadcasts, new followers, chat average, subscription levels and income summary.

Content creators can use the analytics tool to view the statistics of their streams and display graphs on revenue received per minute and break down the graphs based on different time periods.

Broadcast options

A very useful Twitch tool is the “broadcast key” that we can place in the OBS program. To use this tool, it is best to make the configurations from the first moment.

One detail to keep in mind is that there is a deadline to save previous streamings: 60 days for Prime users and 14 days for regular users. It must also be considered that within this section the type of transmission is marked whether or not it is appropriate for minors (without leaving aside that the platform's policies prohibit content with violence or nudity).

Other options are settings for multiplayer streaming, managing editors to moderate the subscriber community and VIPs.

The Twitch Studio and OBS Studio tool

Twitch Studio is a software tool used by platform users to start transmitting.

You can download it directly from the site and once you configure account and camera access, in addition to customizing the details of colors and stream quality, Twitch Studio will automatically optimize the quality of your stream so you can start streaming by clicking “start retransmission”.

On the other hand, OBS studio tool allows you to stream on Twitch. You just have to download it, install it and after configuring this tool on the computer, we can open it and select the “automatic” option for transmission.

The relay key must be pasted into the “Relay Key” option that you can find within the control panel. After entering the key, the only thing left is to configure the source for the scene and start streaming from OBS.

How monetization works on Twitch

YouTube and other platforms offer options to monetize their users' content. But For many people, monetization on Twitch works more attractively than on other networks.

Within this platform it is possible to earn money in exchange for meeting certain objectives or through donations that subscribers make voluntarily.

At Twitch we can be part of the affiliate program that allows us to earn monetization benefits. But to enter this program it is necessary to achieve certain goals:

• Reach a minimum of 50 followers.
• Accumulate 500 minutes of broadcasts during the last 30 days.
• Have approximately 3 viewers in your broadcasts during the last 7 days.

Content creators who meet all the requirements can enter the affiliate program and start earning money through subscriptions, or even create special memberships for those who subscribe to your streams. There is also the possibility of obtaining a percentage of income through the sale of games related to the platform.

How to become a Twitch Partner

By being part of the affiliate program we can advance to the level of Twitch Partner and get more benefits to generate income.

But to be a Twitch Partner you have to meet some criteria:

• Accumulate at least 25 hours broadcast during the last 30 days.
• Have 25 hours of broadcasts during the last 30 days.
• Have an average of streamings made on a minimum of 12 different days during the last 30 days.
• Have at least 75 accumulated viewers during the last 30 days.

Creators who meet these requirements will be able to access the advantages that the site offers for this level of Twitch, such as: receiving personalized assistance from the platform's support, customizing the colors and other channel functions, storing live streams for 60 days and earn a percentage of the revenue by sharing ads on the channel.

And what do you think of this platform? Tell us what you think about Twitch and how this platform works, and if you plan to start using it and test its advantages as a content creator.