Going into effect shortly
Twitch has updated its policy for creators in order to introduce restrictions on gambling ads and links through the live streaming site. The company made this update on Thursday, telling channels that they will no longer be able to share gambling-related promo links or referral codes.
Twitch explained that the reason for the introduction of this amendment – titled “Restriction on Gambling Related Links” – was to prevent scams and harms “created by questionable gambling services that sponsor content on Twitch.”
links and referral codes for sites offering dice, roulette, or slots games would no longer be allowed
The statement said that links and referral codes for sites offering dice, roulette, or slots games would no longer be allowed. Twitch also noted that it will continue to monitor content related to gambling and make further updates if necessary. This new policy will go into effect on August 17.
Target of criticism
The Amazon-owned site received criticism during the summer for its failure to properly police the way in which people were promoting gambling-related content through live streams, a key reason for Twitch changing its policy.
One of the biggest controversies was popular video game streamer Tyler “Trainwrecks” Niknam promoting an online casino with a Curaçao license through his 1.5 million-subscriber channel. Streamers such as Niknam who were subject to this type of criticism responded by saying that the “gamba meta” tag on Twitch allows them to promote this type of content to an adult audience.
Another flashpoint saw Slovakia’s national media agency actually ban Twitch because it determined that the video streaming platform was in violation of the nation’s advertising codes as streamers were able to broadcast content of themselves gambling online.
A powerful advertising tool
Twitch is a massively popular video streaming platform, with millions of people tuning in to streams each day. In addition to being extremely popular for video game streaming, it also plays host to many gambling-related live streams.
organizations such as the World Poker Tour (WPT) have regularly live streamed tournaments on Twitch
Poker, in particular, has benefitted from streaming, with many major Twitch personalities regularly streaming their online cash games and tournament play. It has been very important in growing the reach of poker around the world. Organizations such as the World Poker Tour (WPT) have regularly live streamed tournaments on Twitch and are popular platforms for poker-related advertisers.
Recently, many streamers have been on the receiving end of lucrative deals for playing certain types of casino games. Streamers such as Roshtein have played online slots in front of over 25,000 viewers.