Twitch looks different now for most of you. Amazon’s livestreaming video platform is in the process of updating its site so that everyone who is logged in sees the Twitch Pulse social stream instead of the old homepage. This rollout began last week, and all Twitch members will have the update by next week, according to the company. The site is using Pulse to improve engagement with its audience and to help them discover a wider variety of both recorded and live content.
If you go to Twitch.tv right now and are logged in, many of you will see the featured livestream carousel at the top. But alongside that, you’ll also see a feed of clips and recorded broadcasts that an algorithm chooses based on your viewing history. You also have a prompt box that will ask you if you want to share a clip, text, or something else with your followers similar to how Facebook works.
Twitch revealed Pulse back in March. At the time, company communications boss Sheila Raju explained in a blog post that this new social tool is about making it “easier for streamers and viewers to engage with each other … whether a stream is live or not.”
https://vimeo.com/206671646
Pulse went live for most people back in March, but now that it is front and center when you load into the site, it could turn into an important tool for viewers and broadcasters.
Many popular livestreamers work countless hours building up their following on Twitch, but then they have to get that audience to then follow them on Reddit or Twitter to keep in contact when not in front of a camera. Pulse bridges the gap between streams and enables broadcasters to keep drip feeding content between longer livestream sessions.
I used Pulse to share one of my YouTube clips, but I may even start using Twitch’s video uploading options more often if Pulse seems like it will help more people discover those videos.