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Dimapur, October 21 (EMN): Streaming platform Twitch has revealed that it is trialling a month-long test that includes a rewind feature for live streams.
According to Twitch, a user can tap on the "Rewind the Stream" button to go back to the stream by two minutes, letting users scrub back to see something again or a moment that they might have missed. It will also play the current live stream in a picture-in-picture mode so that users can jump right back to the live stream after watching the rewind.
However, the "Rewind the Stream" button will only be available for streams that have VODs enabled.
???? Over the next month, some viewers may see up to 3 new buttons on live channels pages: Rewind the Stream, Remind Me, & Watch Trailer. This experiment will inform future features only and the buttons will be removed once it’s complete.
— Twitch Support (@TwitchSupport) October 20, 2021
For feedback: https://t.co/52L43BAJsz
In a Twitter post, Twitch wrote "Over the next month, some viewers may see up to 3 new buttons on live channels pages: Rewind the Stream, Remind Me, & Watch Trailer. This experiment will inform future features only and the buttons will be removed once it’s complete."
Apart from the ability to rewind live streams, Twitch is also testing other features including a "Remind Me" button (set alerts for your favourite streams) and "Watch Trailer" (watch channel trailer of a stream if they have one).
The flurry of new updates is definitely something that Twitch feels is needed to optimise the user experience, however, IRL streamers have expressed security concerns over the rewind feature. For example, the feature could be abused to reveal the location of a streamer or clip unintentional terms-of-service violations in the background.
Only time will tell how the new updates will affect streamers and users alike.