Twitch Prime is shaping the future of esports

When Amazon acquired Twitch in 2014, it sent a message to the general North American live-streaming industry that esports wasn’t just a legitimate source of entertainment or streaming, but that it had potential to grow into an enormous revenue stream for any organization willing to be part of the ecosystem. While esports has been a global phenomenon since the early 2000s, research from gaming analyst group Newzoo found that it predominately comes from parts of the world other than North America.

For example, the Asia-Pacific has the largest audience for esports in the world at 50%, while North America accounts for only 13%. This number will grow significantly over the next decade because of Amazon’s acquisition and the subsequent response from other powerful players like YouTube and Facebook. Here are the three main reasons why Twitch Prime will dramatically alter esports in North America.