What Happened: YouTube, a subsidiary of Alphabet Inc. GOOGL GOOG, is internally testing an online gaming product named ‘Playables,’ according to an email sent to Google employees.
The new service is part of CEO Neal Mohan’s strategy to explore new growth areas amidst a slowdown in advertising spending, The Wall Street Journal reports.
The email revealed that Google had invited its employees to test the new YouTube product, which allows users to access games on mobile devices or desktop computers. The games available for testing include titles like Stack Bounce, an arcade game where players attempt to smash layers of bricks with a bouncing ball.
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Why It Matters: YouTube, with its billions of monthly users, is a popular destination for gamers and competes with Amazon.com Inc’s AMZN Twitch for viewers of livestreamed footage. The introduction of online games could give YouTube a larger footprint in the gaming sector. This move comes as other platforms like Twitter and Netflix are also venturing into the gaming space.
However, Google’s past attempts at distributing games have had mixed success, and the online gaming market has been cooling off. Despite this, the company often tests new services internally before releasing them to the public. The email did not specify how YouTube would monetize the product.
Simple, easily shareable games like those being tested for Playables have had moments of popularity on platforms like Tencent’s WeChat and Meta Platforms META-owned Facebook. However, some developers of viral games, such as “Angry Birds”, have struggled to replicate their initial success.
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