One of the most popular video game streamers on Twitch, the gaming website acquired by Amazon four years ago for $1.1 billion, is Tyler Blevins. He streams his video game sessions on the platform almost every day and has 250,000 paid subscribers, which earns him $500,000 … per month.

If there is any doubt about making money in video gaming, Blevins’ success allays those concerns. But Twitch is also focused on enabling other platform participants to make a living too.

“Some do it for the attention, some do it for the money, and some do it for fame,” said Chase (pictured), director of public relations at Twitch Interactive Inc., who uses only his singular name. “We want to help support those who are trying to do it for a career.”

Chase spoke with Jeff Frick (@JeffFrick), host of theCUBE, SiliconANGLE Media’s mobile livestreaming studio, during the E3 event in Los Angeles. They discussed various ways that Twitch users can monetize content and opportunities for third-party developers to create interactive features on the platform. (* Disclosure below.)

Subscriptions generate revenue

The gaming website offers a number of options to monetize content. In addition to Partner and Affiliate programs, Twitch Prime provides members of Amazon Prime with the opportunity to receive a free 30-day subscription to any content creator on the platform.

“We’ve seen a huge amount of revenue being generated by our creators just from people using their free 30-day subscription,” Chase said.

There is also Cheering with Bits, virtual goods placed into chat that become animated emoticons. The idea is for members of the Twitch community to show support for their favorite streamers.

“The more [bits] you put in, the bigger the emotes get and the more animated they get,” Case explained. “A creator can see who their biggest fans are, and that’s another way they can monetize.”

Twitch has also introduced Extensions, a third-party developer program that adds interactive functionality to a broadcaster’s channel page. One example is an extension released for the developmental “G” league of the National Basketball Association, where viewers can click on a player and view statistics and other information.

“They create a more interactive experience for viewers, and that’s where we see the future of gaming going,” Chase concluded.

Watch the complete video interview below, and be sure to check out more of SiliconANGLE’s and theCUBE’s coverage of the E3 event. (* Disclosure: TheCUBE is a paid media partner for E3 2018. Neither Western Digital Corp., the event sponsor, nor other sponsors have editorial control over content on theCUBE or SiliconANGLE.)

Photo: SiliconANGLE