On June 6, popular streaming service Twitch rolled out a new set of advertising rules that trouble streamers big and small. The rules are directly related to the additions of branded content streamers to their streams, which are an important source of revenue for creators, and the new set of rules could very well have consequences. big for your favorite streamers.
Following the announcement, streamers took to Twitter and Twitch to lament the changes, with Big names like Asmongold threaten to leave Twitch altogether. Twitch offered some explanations via Twitter, but it’s unclear what rules will actually apply on July 1.
This could be a defining moment in the streaming site’s relationship with its creators, who are undoubtedly the reason it exists. But what exactly did Twitch announce and what does it mean?
Twitch Ads Changed, Explained
The new branded content rules are pretty broad and seem consider the revenue source of many streamers outside of Twitch as a violation of their terms of service. The rules include limiting online logos to three percent of the screen size and not allowing video ads, displaying images, and recorded audio. “Burned-in” refers to “pre-recorded advertising or promotions embedded directly into the stream” through software such as OBS and Xsplit, according to Twitch expansion update shared on its help page.
Branded content is the main source of income for streamers, because controversial 50/50 revenue split in September 2022 make them feel exploited by the Amazon-owned company. A contract with a gamer beverage or gaming peripheral that allows them to manually place a banner into their stream, with the money from that partnership going directly into their pocket. they—not split as revenue from advertising broadcasts via Twitch.
Ping Labs CEO and former Twitch employee Theo Browne said: “The big creators are the ones who are mostly affected by this. Kotaku by phone. “And that’s the scary thing—the top 100 streamers on Twitch have just been told they’re not allowed to make 80% of their revenue the way they usually do. This will have consequences.”
EQUAL a streamer rather sarcastically pointed outbecause of Twitch’s new advertising rules DO allowing creators to place branded products in the background of their stream, they can at least try to crowdsource their streaming setup with random entries.
But it’s not just popular streamers who are “crazy” by the new Twitch advertising rules—but also major events like The Game Awards and The Streamer Awards, which only occasionally use the service. this streaming service to broadcast the ceremonies live.
“Specifically, events are terrible—the only way to monetize viewers on Twitch is to stream six days a week, you need to stream continuously for about 60+ hours a week…if you are a streaming event Browne explains that every three months or once a year, that model doesn’t work. “You need sponsors to make money…events are only possible with sponsor money. And those sponsors want to be fairly prominent in that content to make it work. These are the deals that streamers and creators are building outside of the platform, because that’s the only way to earn enough to justify these types of content.”
What about charity streams on Twitch?
These new rules could also seriously jeopardize charity streams hosted on the streaming service. consider Summer Games Done Quick just raised $2.6 million for the Cancer Prevention FundTwitch’s new advertising rules should be of great interest to charity streamers.
“For charities, they often share resources that help creators communicate their messages effectively…in theory, this could prevent creators from showing videos about the organization. nonprofit that is an advertisement or banner with information about a charity that highlights additional information,” said Alyssa Sweetman, former head of Twitch philanthropy Kotaku via Twitter DM. “For me, because I advise nonprofits…I’m just looking for clarity to make sure I’m not encouraging any nonprofit to do something that might get them on. or the creators they work with in trouble.”
Twitch responds to streamers’ anger
Not long after the internet responded, Twitch has released a series of tweets clarifying its branded content policy, saying the initial update was “too broad”. But the rest of the company’s tweets didn’t effectively clarify the situation, and the livestreamers remained angry.
Browne said Kotaku that convulsion technique always banned “burn” videos but didn’t actually enforce it before. “It’s bad to believe it. I’ve also seen platforms that sell that service…literally just embedding an ad player into your stream to make money.” That’s what Twitch says it’s trying to explicitly ban streaming, but the string of tweets shared on the afternoon of June 6 isn’t reneging on its promise to limit the size of the branded content logo.
“We do not intend to limit the ability of streamers to engage in direct relationships with sponsors, and we understand that this is an important part of how streamers earn money. enter,” continued Twitch’s tweet thread. “We would like to clarify our current advertising policy that prohibits third-party ad networks from selling pre-recorded video and display ads on Twitch, which is consistent with other services.”
Kotaku reached out to Twitch for comment, and a representative pointed us to the aforementioned Twitter thread, which promised to “rewrite the instructions to make it clearer.” It is unclear whether the logo ban is in effect.
“I think it’s more important than anything that if Twitch talks to creators, they’re just doing enough to feel good about making bad decisions,” Browne suggests. to prevent them from making bad decisions. “Even if this is done for legal reasons or as external pressure from the ad group—the ad team has tried very hard to make it easier for Twitch to sell ads…if some advertiser go to Twitch and they see their ad playing on top of another ad streamer, they won’t be happy. So I can understand why they are motivated to make these changes, but they haven’t done any necessary homework or effort to do this in a way that won’t harm. directly to creators and their perception of Twitch.”
Updated on 06/23/23 at 9:35 a.m. ET: Post has been updated to reflect Twitch’s statement and promise of clarity, and correctly identify Summer Olympics Completed Quick Charityt.
