The continuously evolving situation surrounding the COVID-19 coronavirus has made it tough for folks to know just what to do. Should they self-isolate? Work from home? What was the government's latest update? People have a lot of questions. Discord is trying to alleviate some of the communication stresses people are facing by expanding its server capacity.
Over 250 million people worldwide use Discord, the social media/content delivery/messaging app designed for video game communities. With many people across the globe being asked to stay home and avoid direct contact with people as a precaution, the populace turns to digital means in order to maintain lines of communication. Discord recently introduced its live streaming service, allowing users to stream the game they're playing to other Discord friends, and it is in an effort to keep this, and other services the platform offers, operating that Discord announced an expansion of server capacity.
On March 11th the platform upped its streaming and screen share limit from 10 to 50 people for the foreseeable future. This move is for larger groups who may have employees working from home, or students keeping up with classwork. In order to accommodate this increase in streaming, the company announced that it has increased server capacity worldwide by more than 20% to keep these lines of communication open. With more people staying home, and many folks spending that time gaming, Discord is recognizing that its platform is likely to see increased use at this time.
As most people find their normal social patterns disrupted in some way, and with many folks spending more time at home, services like Discord and Twitch are likely to see an uptick in traffic. Streamers, by and large, are individuals working from home already, so their day-to-day rhythms are less disrupted by a crisis like the coronavirus. Turning on Twitch or logging on to Discord reveals a world that feels relatively unaffected by everything going on. With limited outlets for social interaction, these platforms allow for some modicum of normalcy in what are otherwise very strange times.
With events being cancelled, the possibility of consoles being delayed, and a cloud of uncertainty hanging over most of the world right now, Discord increasing server capacity to allow people to maintain vital communication links during trying times is appreciated.
Source: Discord/Twitter