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Mixer (originally known as Beam) was an American video game livestreaming platform. Launched on January 5, 2016, under the ownership of co-founders Matthew Salsamendi and James Boehm, the service emphasized interactivity, with low stream latency and a platform for allowing viewers to perform actions that can influence a stream.

It was acquired by Microsoft in August 2016, renamed from Beam to Mixer in 2017, and integrated into the Xbox division (including top-level integration on Xbox One). In 2019, Mixer gained attention when it signed two top streamers from its main competitor, Twitch – Ninja and Shroud – to a contract with the service.

However, citing an inability to scale its operations, Microsoft announced on June 22, 2020, that Mixer would shut down by the end of July 22 that year, and that an agreement had been made with Facebook for monetized channels to join similar programs on Facebook's game streaming platform. Mixer was officially shut down on July 22, 2020.

Features

This section requires expansion.

Mixer used a low-latency streaming protocol known as FTL ("Faster Than Light"); the service states that this protocol only creates delays of less than a second between the original broadcast and when it is received by users, rather than ten to twenty seconds, making it more appropriate for real-time interactivity between a streamer and their viewers. In addition, viewers can use buttons below a stream to interact with it, including voting, special effects, and influencing gameplay. Some interactions required users to spend "Sparks", a currency accumulated by watching a channel. A second paid currency known as "Embers" was later added, similar to Twitch's "Bits" system; "Embers" could be used to purchase animated chat effects called "Skills". An SDK was available to integrate games with this system.

History

References

	Wikipedia (article: Mixer (service)) This page uses Creative Commons Licensed content from Wikipedia (view authors).