Twitching for Gaming: Media companies continue to look at ways to get the attention of gamers. First came the news that Comcast is looking at streaming EA games. Now multiple reports have Google considering buying video game streaming site Twitch, which features live streams in which video gamers watch each other. The site has steadily gained in popularity, with Sandvine reporting that it now generates more traffic than HBO Go on US networks. Variety, quoting those familiar with the deal, has Google’s YouTube paying more than $1bln for Twitch.

Smart TVs on Rise: Some 42mln US households, or 35% of TV HHs, are expected to have a smart TV by the end of the year, says research from Parks Associates. The firm expects 70% of HHs to have the sets by 2018.

Google Fiber Check: The 34 cities targeted by Google Fiber for potential service to their communities had to submit responses to Google’s checklist earlier this month. Now, Google is in the process of evaluating completion of those items, with the goal of deciding who will get Google Fiber by year-end. Bernstein Research analysts believe there’s a good chance the company will expand to a large portion of those cities. “If Google succeeds in deploying in many of the 34 cities it is currently considering, we believe it could expand Google Fiber to pass 25 million US locations within 6-8 years,” said a Bernstein Research note, citing analysts’ belief that Google will likely build its network in cost-efficient clusters. Read more on Google Fiber here.