YouTube set to buy Twitch for $1bn

Internet giant YouTube is set to buy video streaming site Twitch for a massive $1 billion in cash.

Twitch allows users to watch other people around the world playing video games in real time.

During its peak times the popular site – which is not a household name but hugely popular with gamers – has more traffic than both Facebook and Amazon.

If it goes ahead the deal would be the most significant yet in the history of YouTube, which was purchased by Google in 2006 for $1.65bn (£980m).

Variety magazine broke the story, citing unnamed sources who it said they were familiar with the deal, which is set to be announced shortly.

Twitch, which was launched in 2011 by Justin Kan and Emmett Shear, lets users stream live footage from Xbox and PlayStation 4 consoles, as well as uploading standalone gaming videos.

The company says more than 1 million members upload videos each month, with around 45 million monthly users.

The Variety report claimed that YouTube, the world’s largest video sharing platform, is preparing themselves for the possibility that US regulators may challenge the deal as potentially anti-competitive.

Reportedly, other major technology companies including Microsoft had previously shown interest in Twitch.