YouTube is testing an online-games offering

Hosting online games on the platform is part of CEO Neal Mohan’s push into new areas of growth. (AFP/File)

• ‘Playables’ will be available on YouTube’s site on web browsers or via devices

LONDON: YouTube is internally testing a product for playing online games, the Wall Street Journal reported on Friday citing an email sent to employees at parent company Google.
The company invited its employees to begin testing the new YouTube product called ‘Playables’, the report said, adding that games available for testing included titles such as arcade game Stack Bounce.
The games can be played on YouTube’s site on web browsers or via devices running Google’s Android and Apple’s iOS mobile systems, the report added.
A spokeperson for YouTube said that gaming has long been a focus, adding that the company was experimenting with new features and had “nothing to announce right now.”
Hosting online games on YouTube, which is a popular place for users to stream games and watch livestreamed game footage is part of CEO Neal Mohan’s push into new areas of growth amid a slowdown in advertising spending, the WSJ report said.