Gamers have a reason to cheer as Facebook is coming up with live gaming mobile app on 20 April, reported New York Times. The app will initially be launched for Android devices and Facebook will introduce it for iOS devices once Apple approves them.

“Investing in gaming in general has become a priority for us because we see gaming as a form of entertainment that really connects people,” Fidji Simo, head of the Facebook app, told the New York Times.

More than 2.5 billion people use Facebook every month, but it is still not a challenger to Twitch and YouTube in terms of hours of gameplay watched. Image: Reuters

The company had earlier planned to launch it in June but due to surge in gaming due to Covid-19 quarantine has advance the release.

According to The Verge, with this move, Facebook would be giving competition to Twitch and YouTube. Twitch is owned by Amazon, while YouTube is a Google product.

More than 2.5 billion people use Facebook every month, but it is still not a challenger to Twitch and YouTube in terms of hours of gameplay watched.

“Facebook Gaming has been making incredible strides as they’ve leveraged their global presence and strategic talent acquisitions to bolster their market share in the live streaming space,” reported The Verge reported quoting Doron Nir, CEO of Stream Elements.

Facebook has witnessed a 210 percent surge in hours watched between December 2018 and December 2019, reported the tech website.

Twitch controls 61 percent of hours watched in December 2019, with YouTube commanding another 28 percent of the market.