Since it rolled in its gambling ban in October 2022, Twitch has reported a decline of such content by 75%. However, the platform is determined to continue updating its gambling policy and the list of prohibited content.
The latest brands to be added include Gamdom and Blaze, two casinos that are joining Roobet, Duelbits, Rollbit, and Stake.com. All of these platforms are not presently allowed to stream on the platform under the company’s “Prohibited Gambling Content” policy, part of its general community guidelines.
THE AMAZON-OWNED STREAMING PLATFORM HAS MADE CHANGES TO ITS GAMBLING POLICY, ADDING THE TWO OPERATORS TO ITS LIST OF PROHIBITED WEBSITES
Twitch is not firmly against gambling as such, but it has been very selective in what gambling companies can actually be present on the platform.
One of the contributing factors in determining what websites should be added to the platform’s list include whether or not a website has been licensed in the United States or another jurisdiction – and whether sufficient consumer protection measures are introduced.
Amongst the new changes to the gambling policies, Twitch has explicitly prohibited content creators to push skin gambling onto users.
Specifically, the platform is restricting CS:GO skins with the platform stating flatly: “Promotion or sponsorship of skins gambling is prohibited under our policy.”
Twitch has decided to crack down on gambling content after a scandal broke out last year that a streamer, who had a serious gambling addiction, had purposefully deceived his destructive habit to fuel his habit.
Twitch has not been quite straightforward on what it considers illegal gambling content, as some popular personalities have been betting and gambling on websites “for fun” while dedicated streamers have been ousted.
This has prompted an exodus of Twitch’s top talent that went over to Kick, a newly-formed platform that promised and delivered on splitting its revenue 95-5 with content creators, quickly establishing it as one of the go-to options.
Kick also lets players and audiences opt out of seeing gambling content if they want to, finding a much better way to address the matter than a blanket ban.