The popular platformTwitchhas seen its fair share of controversy this year, though the live-streaming service is certainly used to discourse by now. Still, some of this may have to do withthe launch of Kick, Twitch’s latest streaming rival, and the bans of multiple well-known streamers. Despite this, Twitch is still widely embraced by gamers and streamers alike because of the influence it has had on the online entertainment industry.
It’s no secret thatTwitchhas helped jumpstart the careers of many channels due to its incredibly high monthly user average. However, while Twitch can be a great place for self-expression, streamers often find themselves under the scrutiny of Twitch if they are not adhering to community guidelines. For those who aren’t careful, it can lead to a temporary or even permanent ban.
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Kai Cenat Threatens to Leave Twitch
In March 2023 theStreamer of the Year Award went to Kai Cenat, in recognition of the streamer’s hard work and talent. It can’t be denied that Kai Cenat is one of the biggest names on Twitch right now, though recent bans appear to be testing his patience and loyalty to the site. The first ban of this year took place at the end of January for eating too many edibles on stream and subsequently falling asleep. The most recent TOS violation happened in April and allegedly had to do with him simulating sexual behavior while playingGrand Theft Auto.
Kai Cenat is no stranger to bansseeing as he has accumulated at least five since he switched from YouTube to Twitch in 2021. Though these bans are serious, he has always returned to the platform with vigor. Nevertheless, following the seven-day ban after his April 18th stream, Cenat said in a stream with YourRage and BruceDropEmOff that if he were to be banned again he’d be leaving the platform. Whether this is true is still to be determined, but it would not be the first time Twitch has lost a top streamer to another site.
PewDiePie Hit with Mysterious Ban
PewDiePie’s Twitch channel is an interesting experimenton its own because the YouTube personality hasn’t actually used the platform in years. Later though, fans noticed the channel being revived in March 2023 wherein if they opened up his stream they would be met with a constant loop of the 33-year-old’s YouTube videos. With the title “Infinity Stream,” people have been calling his idea an “infinite money glitch” after realizing the Swedish content creator maintained a steady viewer count without having to film anything new.
Just over a month after the “Infinity Stream” debuted,PewDiePie was banned from Twitchfor seemingly no reason. PewDiePie himself confirmed in a recent YouTube video that he wasn’t sure why but thought it might have to do with recycling videos from 2017, which was a controversial era for him. After three days, however, Twitch reversed the mysterious ban and PewDiePie’s 24/7 stream has resumed as normal.
Amouranth Collects Her Sixth Streaming Ban
Kaitlyn Siragusa, better known as “Amouranth” has become a familiar name due to her hot tub streams, cosplay, and other ventures since she joined Twitch in 2016. In the past few years, the female streamer has made headlines for her controversial content that some have accused of being too sexually suggestive.Twitch has issued six total bans to Amouranth, with her most recent taking place on May 5.
Like many others before, Twitch remained vague as to the reason behind the ban, and she didn’t comment on the situation either. This may have been just as well becauseTwitch reversed Amouranth’s banbarely a day later. There has been speculation that the surprise ban had to do with streamer Adriana Chechik, whom Amouranth has recently been in a dispute with, though there is no evidence of this.
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SicK May Take Legal Action Against Twitch
Hunter ‘SicK’ Mims is best known in the gaming community for playingValorantprofessionally, though he also displayed tremendous skill in games likeCounter-Strike: Global OffensiveandCall of Duty: Modern Warfare 2. In recent months, however, following two separate charges for criminal trespassing,SicK was arrested in both March and May. It seems that the second detainment came after an altercation at a car dealership, though the esports organization he is a part of, Sentinels, paid the set bond.
Life has only continued to become more difficult for SicK after he revealed in a Tweet on May 23 that his Twitch account was banned for two weeks without cause. He went on to write that he refuses to take a two-week ban and might have to sue the platform “if it stays this way.” While Twitch has not yet responded to his criticisms, SicK has already begunstreaming on Kick, Twitch’s newest competitorin the online streaming world.
KiaraaKitty Banned Three Times in the Same Year
The Singapore-based streamer,KiaraaKitty, has received her third ban this yearwhich totals up to six overall bans in her streaming career. KiaraaKitty is best known for her IRL travel streams, gameplay ofGrand Theft Auto 5, and hot tub streams with the latter being her most controversial form of entertainment. The female streamer currently boasts 513,000 followers on the site, but her large audience has not stopped Twitch from enforcing the guideline that “content or camera focus on breasts, buttocks, or pelvic region” are prohibited.
Twitch handed her the most recent ban on April 25, though the reasoning behind the suspension was unclear. Some of her viewers believe the penalty may have been due to KiaraaKitty suggestively applying oil to her chest, which would be on par with her previous ban from a January 22 stream in which she faced backlash after performing squats in front of the camera. It’s believed thatmost of KiaaraKitty’s bansare a result of breaking Twitch’s sexual conduct rules, though her channel has since been reinstated and remains as active as ever.
With seven more months left in 2023, it’s likely thatTwitchwill continue to ban streamers who break its terms of service. Whether the Amazon-owned site will be more transparent with the reasoning behind these suspensions is still uncertain. IfTwitch doesn’t want to lose more of its creators to YouTubeand Kick, it may want to consider including the exact reasons why streamers are being banned in order to avoid further confusion.
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