Recently I talked about recent changes to Twitch made sense considering they were going to be bought by Google. While I still stand by why Twitch made changes to policies regarding copyright music to, I and most people were wrong in thinking that it would be Google that ended buying Twitch. This is just another example of how Amazon is trying to become a key player in the modern age of technology. Any company that isn't changing and growing is by default falling behind. We don't live in an area where any company can expect to not adapt to rapidly changing technologies and survive. While Amazon acquiring Twitch might seem a little of the blue it actually isn't that strange. Just like Facebook buying Oculus Rift, these companies know that gaming is another form of entertainment that is as relevant as film and music, expect that it is a young industry ripe for growth.
Amazon beat out other companies of this deal since most importantly it could afford. Spending $970 million in cash isn't something most companies can afford especially if they don't fully understand online gamers streaming. Then of course their is the battle with giants with Google and one can only guess why they didn't go for this offer. Google understands the internet and they know Twitch is and will become and even bigger player, but it probably has to do a lot with business laws.
What matters is that Twitch won big on this deal. They get to keep their company and run it like they want to, but now with a giant like Amazon to help them and most importantly a lot more resources. One must understand that Twitch didn't even exist before 2011. No matter how fast they have grown this much money is a big deal. Also Amazon has shown that they are a company that understands millennials, which is basically most if not Twitch's entire audience.
Video game broadcasting and streaming is very new to the industry but it is here to stay. It is why PS4 and Xbox ONE support it on their new systems and integrated for their online services. PS4 even went as far as adding a share button onto the controller itself. How Amazon takes advantage of this to improve their other businesses remains to be seen, however with a CEO like Jeff Bezos and a company as awesome as Twitch this is a partnership that will benefit everyone.