While the U.S. government sets its sights on TikTok, the nation’s citizens are looking to rein in a different platform: Twitch. The live streaming hub will be subjected to a widespread boycott as part of an “economic blackout” that will target Amazon-owned businesses on March 7.
The People’s Union USA, an advocacy group that protests America’s economic system, is organizing the anti-Amazon effort. The 24-hour boycott of Jeff Bezos’ companies will come one week after a broader blackout that targeted major corporations and credit card companies.
Even as the blackout put a dent in business at some retailers, it seemed to only help Amazon, which enjoyed a slight sales uptick on February 28. The People’s Union USA is hoping that a more focused attempt to hurt Amazon’s bottom line will deliver more impactful results. It’s a “calculated strike,” according to People’s Union leader John Schwarz. “If you want to focus your firepower, you target what you use the most,” he said.
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Twitch is not the first Amazon property that springs to mind when you imagine the corporation’s economic excesses, but the platform’s ties to its parent company have grown tighter in recent years. For years after its 2014 acquisition of Twitch (which cost it about $1 billion), Amazon kept its hands off its video game hub and allowed it to primarily operate independently.
Since breaking out Twitch revenue for the first time last year, Amazon has exerted more influence on the platform, especially in the realm of brand partnerships. Twitch’s reliance on Amazon may help its development overall, but for 24 hours, its ties to its parent company will be a hindrance.
Ironically, The People’s Union may inadvertently harm its own cause with its economic blackout. Twitch is a hotbed for political organization and a home for left-wing firebrands like Hasan Piker. During the boycott, will those progressives be unable to reach a portion of their audience?
If The People’s Union wants to really hurt Amazon, it would have to convince people to give up their scrolling entirely. The Amazon Web Services unit is one of the most profitable arms of its parent company, and it’s hard to use the internet at all without running into an AWS-hosted site.
