Meet Mixer, formerly Beam, Microsoft’s interactive livestreaming platform

Screenshot of Mixer for interactive livestreaming

A big evolution of Microsoft’s interactive livestreaming platform was announced Thursday, including a new name for the service: Mixer (formerly Beam). Users will also see several features they’ve been asking for that unlock a whole new world of possibilities for social streaming, and help viewers find the content they’re looking for across the service.

“We chose Mixer as our new name because it represents what we love most about the service …. how it brings people together,” writes Matt Salsamendi, co-founder and engineering lead of the platform at Microsoft.

Mixer brings people together “through the core experience and ‘special sauce’ that our fans already know and love: the ability to not just watch streams, but to also interact with streamers and play together in near real-time,” Salsamendi writes. “In other words, Mixer is livestreaming that’s actually LIVE, compared to the 10- 20-second latency you typically get on other platforms. What’s more, viewers can actively participate in what’s happening on screen instead of just watching from the sidelines.”

Read more from Salsamendi about Mixer.

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