SAN FRANCISCO: Twitter is launching a new free app for Apple TV, Amazon Fire TV and Microsoft's Xbox One, enabling users to stream live video via their TV sets.
The social network announced in a statement that the app will feature all live streaming available on Twitter, including live streams of 10 NFL Thursday night games, the first of which – the New York Jets against the Buffalo Bills – was due to be streamed last night.
In addition, users will be able to access content from Major League Baseball Advanced Media, the National Basketball Association, Pac 12 Networks, Campus Insiders, Cheddar and Bloomberg News.
There will also be tweets, short-video Vines as well as Periscopes, the live-streaming app. Twitter said that anyone with these devices could "enjoy the experience" regardless of whether they have a Twitter account or a pay TV subscription.
"Twitter has always been a great complement to TV, and now fans can enjoy even more premium video with live Tweets, and the best content on Twitter, right from their TVs," said Anthony Noto, Twitter's Chief Financial Officer.
"We're excited to introduce this new experience to people, without requiring a paywall or having to log in to Twitter," he added.
Twitter advised consumers that all they need to do is to visit a relevant app store to download the free apps. While Twitter for Apple TV is available globally via the App Store for Apple TV, the apps for the other two platforms are more restricted.
Twitter on Xbox One is available only in Australia, Brazil, Canada, Mexico, the UK and the US, while Twitter for Amazon Fire TV and Fire TV Stick is available only in the US and the UK.
According to the Financial Times, Twitter has been struggling to grow its user base as it faces increasing competition from the likes of Facebook and Snapchat.
However, its deal with the NFL for an undisclosed sum, among others, is intended to broaden Twitter's appeal to sports fans as well as helping to meet CEO Jack Dorsey's objective of "owning" live video online.
The social network announced in a statement that the app will feature all live streaming available on Twitter, including live streams of 10 NFL Thursday night games, the first of which – the New York Jets against the Buffalo Bills – was due to be streamed last night.
In addition, users will be able to access content from Major League Baseball Advanced Media, the National Basketball Association, Pac 12 Networks, Campus Insiders, Cheddar and Bloomberg News.
There will also be tweets, short-video Vines as well as Periscopes, the live-streaming app. Twitter said that anyone with these devices could "enjoy the experience" regardless of whether they have a Twitter account or a pay TV subscription.
"Twitter has always been a great complement to TV, and now fans can enjoy even more premium video with live Tweets, and the best content on Twitter, right from their TVs," said Anthony Noto, Twitter's Chief Financial Officer.
"We're excited to introduce this new experience to people, without requiring a paywall or having to log in to Twitter," he added.
Twitter advised consumers that all they need to do is to visit a relevant app store to download the free apps. While Twitter for Apple TV is available globally via the App Store for Apple TV, the apps for the other two platforms are more restricted.
Twitter on Xbox One is available only in Australia, Brazil, Canada, Mexico, the UK and the US, while Twitter for Amazon Fire TV and Fire TV Stick is available only in the US and the UK.
According to the Financial Times, Twitter has been struggling to grow its user base as it faces increasing competition from the likes of Facebook and Snapchat.
However, its deal with the NFL for an undisclosed sum, among others, is intended to broaden Twitter's appeal to sports fans as well as helping to meet CEO Jack Dorsey's objective of "owning" live video online.
Data sourced from Twitter, Financial Times; additional content by Warc staff
