The live-streaming industry is getting a new contender, SharePlayWhenever I talk about SharePlay in a blog post, 99% of the time it will be shareplay.tv. I do not own any Apple devices!! This is not to be confused with Apple or PlayStation’s “SharePlay” – they are unrelated. They are hoping to carve out a niche for themselves as a viable alternative to the streaming titan, TwitchLinks to my Twitch channel!. Let’s explore what they bring to the table, and how they aim to shake things up.
I, Kenson, am one of their early Alpha testers! Though, I am taking a small break from streaming here, until clips and/or VODs are in, which will make it much easier on my system’s resource usage. Come watch me when I’m live on SharePlay! (check the Discord Events tab for this info)
The Focus on Discoverability
One of the biggest challenges for new streamers is getting their content seen by the public. This new platform is promising to be a platform designed to help Creators stand out. Their algorithms will show random streamers on the front page, up top for live channels, and scrolling down a bit for offline channels, as well:
SharePlay Is Born
Putting Creators First, But Not Forgetting Viewers!
SharePlay aims to be a platform that lets creators of all sizes get discovered! Traditional streaming sites focus on a “top-down” view of streams, showing the most to the least viewers. This makes it extremely difficult for newer communities to get discovered in the first place! SharePlay hopes to help resolve this by showing streams of all sizes on the home page and category pages, without showing viewer numbers, so people aren’t as likely to go “Oh, they’re popular, let’s check them out instead.”
While some details are still under wraps, SharePlay is committed to providing a rewarding experience for viewers and streamers. One exciting feature is a global “level” system that appears next to your name in all messages. We don’t know what will be added to that system, but that’s one thing we’re looking forward to! We don’t have a lot of details about other systems, but we do know they are going to work on features for viewers, as well as streamers!
Is SharePlay a Twitch Killer?
While it is too early to say if it will be a “Twitch killer,” or dethrone it, it does offer new options for both streamers and viewers. Its focus on discoverability, creator benefits, and its plans for viewers (which Kenson cannot talk about right now due to NDA) give it the potential to be an amazing competitor to Twitch!
Things To Look Out For
- Content moderation: Building a safe and inclusive community is crucial for any streaming platform. It will be interesting to see how SharePlay handles moderation. Will they have clear and enforceable community guidelines? For example, Twitch has had issues with harassment and hate speech and has struggled to keep those from going overboard. Striking a balance between creating a welcoming environment, and allowing free speech, will be essential for the platform’s success.
- Building a Community: A successful platform thrives on having a strong community. How SharePlay fosters interaction and engagement will be key to attracting and retaining viewers. Can streamers easily connect with their community? That is important. Community building, and encouraging it, will be essential for SharePlay to create a platform that feels engaging and interactive for viewers, AND streamers.
SharePlay’s development is signaling a potential shift in the streaming landscape. Whether it does become an actual Twitch competitor, or only offers a fresh experience for creators & viewers, we all know one thing: we will have more options to choose from. We can only hope that SharePlay will become a worthy platform to stream and watch streams on.
We warmly welcome you to join us on Discord, and on Kenson’s live streams, weekly on Mon, Wed, Fri @ 5 PM CST!
We don’t bite … much!
We’d love to have you come and join the pack today, on both Discord & Live!
