Facebook Gaming App: A Video Game Live Streaming Service

Facebook Gaming is taking on Twitch and YouTube

Facebook Gaming App to Join the Game Streaming — Image: Facebook

The coronavirus pandemic has led to people getting stuck indoors. So, people are exploring new ways to pass the time and keep themselves entertained. One of the things they indulge in is video games as they provide fun and entertainment at the same time. If you are also stuck indoors and hoping for something new, you’d probably like the fact that Facebook Gaming is on its way.

Yes, Facebook is releasing Facebook Gaming app months ahead of its schedule to entertain the fans and give stiff competition to Twitch and YouTube. It will be a free app that launched on Google’s Play store first and then an iOS version will be released after Apple’s approval.

The Head of Facebook Gaming App, Fidji Simo said that the plans to release it were shifted from June because there was “a big rise in gaming during the quarantine.” He also said “Investing in gaming, in general, has become a priority for us because we see gaming as a form of entertainment that really connects people. It’s entertainment that’s not just a form of passive consumption but entertainment that is interactive and brings people together.”

At the moment, you can watch and stream games by using the core Facebook app as well, but Amazon’s Twitch and Google’s YouTube Gaming are leading the race when it comes to the total number of hours watched. By releasing the Facebook Gaming app, the company wants to focus on mobile gaming instead of the usual PC and console streamers.

When Facebook Gaming app is launched, you will be able to stream your play sessions through the app by clicking on Go Live button that will let you upload streams of other mobile games on the same device if you just press a few buttons.

Vivek Sharma, Facebook’s Vice President for Gaming, said “We don’t want to be the background window in a Chrome tab while someone is doing their homework or doing something else. With mobile, if you have the app open and you’re using the app, it’s in the foreground. You can’t do anything else on your mobile phone, and that is extremely powerful.”

You will also be able to use the Facebook Gaming stream and broadcast it to your personal page to attract viewers on and off the app. The company will not earn through advertising on Facebook Gaming app initially. The key revenue sources will be commissions from the extension of the “stars” system. It is Facebook Gaming’s name for real-world cash which you can tip to individual streamers (it sounds similar to bits from Twitch).

YouTube and Twitch rule the USD 160 (AUD 251) billion gaming industry. Facebook is on the third spot while Microsoft’s Mixer is on number four. So, Facebook Gaming will obviously be aiming for the Number 1 spot.