Hitbox (service)
 | |
Type of site | Streaming video service |
|---|---|
| Available in | English German Polish Russian Italian Portuguese Spanish French |
| Dissolved | May 9, 2017 succeeded by Smashcast |
| Successor | Smashcast |
| Owner | Azubu |
| URL | www |
| Commercial | Yes |
| Registration | Optional |
| Launched | October 2013 |
| Current status | Merged with Azubu |
Hitbox was a live-streaming esports video game website launched in October 2013.[1] It was a competitor to Twitch.[2][3] It was acquired by Azubu, and then became Smashcast.[4]
History
[edit]Hitbox was launched in October 2013 by co-founders Martin Klimscha and Igor Karabaš. In November 2015, the platform secured a $4,000,000 Series A funding round led by equity platform SeedInvest, alongside video game publisher Wargaming and media investment firm North Base Media.[5][6][7] Following this investment, Hitbox announced infrastructure plans focused on expanding its platform capabilities and reducing stream latency to compete directly with Amazon's Twitch.[8]
During its active operational phase, the platform sought to capitalize on structural adjustments within the streaming ecosystem. In 2014, Hitbox actively positioned itself to attract broadcasters who were dissatisfied with Twitch's implementation of stricter copyright enforcement policies and automated audio muting on archived video on demand (VOD) content.[1][3]
In April 2016, Hitbox expanded its market footprint by signing a two-year commercial broadcasting agreement with prominent competitive esports organizations, including ESL, DreamHack, and Wargaming, marking a distinct departure from their previous exclusive distribution arrangements with Twitch.[9][10] At its peak development, the service reported approximately 6 million monthly active users and completed a technical transition from a legacy Adobe Flash Player model to a native HTML5 media framework in March 2016.[11][12] Mobile and desktop software applications for Hitbox were released across Windows, Android, and iOS platforms.[13]
On January 10, 2017, Hitbox announced that the company had been acquired by rival streaming enterprise Azubu.[14] The platform officially ceased independent operations on May 5, 2017, with all domain traffic permanently redirecting to Smashcast, a newly unified streaming property managed by a combined team of Hitbox and Azubu staff.[15][16][17]
References
[edit]- 1 2 "Twitch CEO Admits Screw Up, Hitbox Jumps To Acquire Disillusioned Streamers". Inquisitr.com. August 8, 2014. Retrieved June 23, 2016.
- ↑ "Top Twitch broadcasters are considering livestreaming alternatives -- here's where they may end up". Venturebeat.com. August 7, 2014. Retrieved June 23, 2016.
- 1 2 Walker, Alex (May 27, 2016). "Twitch Takes Aim At Third Party Services By Adding Clips". Archived from the original on May 28, 2016. Retrieved August 3, 2016.
- ↑ Stubbs, Mike (May 11, 2017). "Meet the new Twitch rival, Smashcast". www.redbull.com. Retrieved July 7, 2025.
- ↑ "Where Will You Watch Wargaming Streams?". Fortune. November 4, 2015. Retrieved July 27, 2016.
- ↑ "Wargaming helps invest $4M into Twitch competitor Hitbox". Game Developer. November 4, 2015. Retrieved June 11, 2026.
- ↑ "Wargaming backs game streaming platform Hitbox in $4m funding round". MCV/DEVELOP. 2015. Retrieved June 11, 2026.
- ↑ Partridge, Jon. "How Hitbox plans to take on Twitch". Red Bull. Retrieved July 27, 2016.
- ↑ "Watch out Twitch, Hitbox is coming". April 6, 2016. Retrieved July 27, 2016.
- ↑ Wolmarans, Kyle (April 6, 2016). "Watch out Twitch, Hitbox is coming".
- ↑ "Hitbox challenges Amazon's Twitch and Google's YouTube in game livestreaming". VentureBeat. June 27, 2015. Retrieved July 27, 2016.
- ↑ "Hitbox is HTML5 ready". March 14, 2016. Archived from the original on August 7, 2016. Retrieved August 3, 2016.
- ↑ "Hitbox app launches on Windows 10 PC, coming to Windows 10 Mobile". July 19, 2016. Retrieved July 27, 2016.
- ↑ "A New Beginning". Hitbox Blog. January 10, 2017. Archived from the original on May 10, 2017. Retrieved January 29, 2017.
- ↑ "Welcome to Smashcast". smashcast. May 9, 2017. Archived from the original on April 23, 2024. Retrieved May 10, 2017.
- ↑ "Hitbox and Azubu to relaunch as Smashcast following merger". Esports Insider. May 2017. Retrieved June 11, 2026.
- ↑ "Azubu and Hitbox merge and relaunch as Smashcast". MCV/DEVELOP. 2017. Retrieved June 11, 2026.
