Twitch, Amazon's video game streaming service is sponsoring "Twitch Stream Aid 2020." The 12-hour benefit virtual show is a gathering of the gaming community and several celebrity guests from music and sports to raise awareness and funds for the Covid-19 cause.

The charity will be streamed live on March 28, beginning at 12 pm ET at Twitch's channel and will end at midnight. All proceeds and donations from the big event will be contributed to the Covid-19 Solidarity Response Fund for World Health Organization (WHO) powered by the United Nations Foundation.

Charlie Puth asked his fans on Twitter to watch on his channel twitch.tv/charlieputh
(Photo : Facebook/@charlieputh)

Big names from the music industry from around the world will extend support such as Charlie Puth, Ellie Goulding, Joe Jonas, Jordin Sparks, Rita Ora, John Legend, Diplo, Lauv, Steve Aoki and more. Across the globe from South Korea, K-pop band groups Monsta X and (G)ilde will be pitching in their share.

Stream Aid 2020 flow

The live broadcasting show with the slogan "Go Live to Save Lives" will kick off with an introduction and musical performance. It will be followed by competitions featuring Fortnite and Uno with celebrities playing the games such as Joe Jonas, Lost Kings, Drew Taggart from the Chainsmokers, and others.

In between the Twitch Rival program, expect musical performances to liven the half-day event. There will be special appearances of sports celebrities including Australian golfer Greg Norman, Formula One race car driver Lando Norris, American gymnast and Olympian Aly Raisman with American football players Richard Sherman and Darius Slay. More than 70 musicians and other celebrities have signified their participation as listed on Twitch Stream Aid official website.

Twitch said in its blog that Stream Aid 2020 is the kick-off for a week-long charity effort. The gaming community is asked to continue hosting their streams to raise funds for the meaningful cause further.

Stream Aid 2020 will be added to the list of the charity drives sponsored by Twitch's streamers. Last year, more than $2 million was raised by Ben "DrLupo" Lupo for St. Jude Children's Research Hospital. Twitch did its share at the end by pitching in $1 million for the cause.

What is Twitch exactly?

Twitch is the world's leading live streaming platform run by Twitch Interactive, a subsidiary of Amazon. It was created in 2011 originally for video games. The online service evolved to streaming video broadcasts covering music, talk shows, artwork contributions, and occasional TV series.

What started as a video game streaming service soon expanded to reach a wider audience. IRL (In Real Life) is the most popular non-gaming category where streamers can chat with viewers. Another most-watched non-game pick is Talk Shows that features a mix of podcasts, live discussions, and variety shows. Cooking is another hit that showcases as the name suggests, cooking and food shows.

For those interested in the arts, the Creative category is the option to go. Here, designers, artists, cosplayers, animators, and programmers can showcase their works by sharing these with a unique audience.

The online service has over two million unique streamers per month. Users, as many as 17 thousand, can earn money through the Twitch Partner program that features paid subscriptions and ad placements. Twitch was taken over by Amazon in 2014.

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