A page turns to Twitch. The platform’s co-founder, Emmett Shear, who has served as CEO since October 2011, has decided to step down, effective immediately. He will be replaced by Dan Clancy, who has been president since 2019. However, Emmett Shear will continue to work as a consultant for Twitch.
Before Twitch became a particularly popular streaming platform in the gaming world, Twitch was a website that offered a 24/7 reality show to follow the adventures of Justin Kan, one of its founders. Launched in 2006, the platform was then called Justin.tv. Over time, as it has evolved, it has positioned itself on other subjects, particularly video games.
It is this sector that will take the company to a new dimension with the creation of Twitch.tv in 2011. The success of the platform, which now has more than 140 million monthly active users, will eventually be reflected in the eyes of Amazon, which put nearly a billion dollars on the table in 2014 to be able to afford it. So, Emmett Shear will have remained at the helm of Twitch for nearly a decade following its acquisition by the e-commerce giant. His resignation is further evidence of the exodus of executives that has hit Amazon since Andy Jassy, who succeeded Jeff Bezos, took office.