Twitch Bans Gambling Streaming
Hugely popular streaming site Twitch has announced it is no longer permitting streaming gambling sites including slots, roulette or dice games that aren’t licensed either in the US or jurisdictions where responsible gambling and player protection is forefront.
Twitch had already taken some steps to protect viewers by not allowing streamers to provide referral codes to real money casino sites online. However, in their statement made yesterday, September 21st, they noted that some people were promoting codes anyway.
Their latest statement reads in full:
An update on gambling on Twitch. pic.twitter.com/lckNTY9Edo
— Twitch (@Twitch) September 20, 2022
Why the announcement?
A few days ago some of Twitch’s popular streamers threatened to effectively go on strike if Twitch did not change its gambling streaming policy. The outrage came from an incident where a Twitch streamer named ItsSliker admitted to spending other streamers money to fund a gambling addiction. Successful streamers such as Pokimane and Mizkif raised awareness of the issue suggesting the streamers go on strike over Christmas to impact Amazon (owner of Twitch) profits.
like if twitch should ban gambling
— pokimane ? (@pokimanelol) September 18, 2022
Which sites are Twitch banning from streaming?
US betting and casino sites licensed by states such as New Jersey, Pennsylvania, Delaware, Michigan or West Virginia are permitted. Twitch calls out Stake.com, Roobet.com, Rollbit.com and Duelbits.com sites that are licensed in Curacao. These crypto focused casino sites garner a lot of community based players on twitter and by sponsoring Twitch streams. More detailed information will be available 18th of October. However we can make an assumption that some jurisdictions will be viewed more favorably. The reason being there are far stricter rules governing player protection in Isle of Man for example.
Reactions to Twitch’s partial ban on gambling
The reaction has been mixed with some celebrating the ban, citing that Twitch is not a place for gambling. Their reasoning is it exposes young people to harm. Others have pointed out Twitch has been far slower to react to serious issues such as hate speech, harassment, and pornographic content. Blocking streaming will not necessarily prevent it from happening either. A lot of work would need to be done to ensure it is being enforced too.
The fact remains there is a huge amount of money to be made by streamers who promote gambling. Live streaming has fostered a new interest in gaming in a younger generation. For these players betting shops and fruit machines are historical relics. There are whole casino business built on the concept of live streaming and betting behind. This is a trend that was cited at the recent SBC gaming conference in Barcelona as the way of future. So with this in mind it seems that as ever, bans are not the ideal solution, but open dialogue that puts player safety but individual freedom at the heart of it. Watch this space.
If you or someone you know is being negatively affected by gambling please read our responsible gambling pages for helpful resources.