Twitch released a Creator Update on Wednesday August 11th announcing that the streaming platform will now prohibit all promotional links and gambling affiliate program referral codes for slots, roulette, and dice games. The new restrictions are set to take effect from Tuesday August 17th.
The company explained the move saying:
“To prevent harm and scams created by questionable gambling services that sponsor content on Twitch, we will prohibit sharing links and/or referral codes to sites that offer slots, roulette, or dice games. We will continue to monitor gambling-related content and update our approach as needed.”
The move by Twitch to target the promotion of gambling products by its streamers comes following complaints from both viewers and anti-gambling advocates.
Many of the top slots streamers on Twitch are reportedly deceiving consumers by not playing with real money, their own money, or in some cases by playing on fake casinos.
The Amazon-owned company has previously stated that it would closely monitor gambling promotion through its channels, but many of the platform’s top streamers such as Pokimane, Asmongold and xQc have weighed in the issue claiming that too little was being done to protect Twitch audiences from the effects of problem gambling.
Twitch has proven to be a huge revenue driver for both gambling providers and their affiliates who promote their products during live streams. As a result, the move could have a significant impact on online casino revenue as streamers will now have very little reason to promote products without the benefit of referral codes or links.
Despite the call by many for an outright ban on gambling content on Twitch, the company has taken on board the feedback it has received from the Twitch community to take a more balanced approach to restrictions. Yet while these restrictions currently only include slots, roulette, and dice games, there has been no indication as to whether or not action will be taken against streamers promoting other gambling services such as online poker.
Earlier this year, Twitch found itself on the wrong side of Slovakian court ruling that banned the platform outright for allowing the streaming of illegal content that included live gambling streams. This decision has since been overturned although it did raise many questions with regards to the company’s policies on gambling.
Many of the top steamers on Twitch Poker and on Twitch Slots are partnered with online gaming sites, as well as Twitch itself.
Based in London, Natasha is a former sports journalist with experience working for some of the biggest athletes & brands in the world of sports and iGaming.