Streamers rally against ‘anti-creator’ policies from Twitch

Issue #141 | June 8, 2023

Just 24 hours after announcing a sweep of stringent restrictions on branded content on Tuesday, Twitch backtracked Wednesday, removing the changes due to creator backlash. Creators were furious at the new policies, rightfully calling the changes “anti-creator” for making sponsorships far more difficult and expensive for streamers to implement.

Another controversial Twitch clause, which banned simulcasting on platforms like YouTube and Kick, also went viral yesterday. The two controversies led streamers like Ninja to speak out against Twitch, threatening to leave. This week, contributor Steven Asarch provides a full breakdown of what went down and why creators are so riled up.

Writer Lon Harris also provides a thoughtful analysis on labor organizing this week, touching on why the narrative crafted by Twitch streamers was so effective in changing the platform’s policies. He explains what creators can learn about narrative-crafting from the ongoing Writers Strike—the power of storytelling and the power of people collide.

Also from contributor Steven, we have a fantastic analysis piece on what went down with the infamous FaZe Clan. Once esports’ most highly valued org, the group is now ridden with infighting, unhappy creators, misogyny, and economic downfall. Read more about it below.

– Grace Stanley, Newsletter Editor

NEWS

‘These limitations are going to push content creators away’: Streamers are furious at Twitch’s new advertising rule change

Burned-in ads and logos that can only take up three percent of a screen just don’t work.

By Steven Asarch, Passionfruit Contributor

→ READ THE FULL STORY

Detail Duo is the camera app for storytellers

Detail launches their biggest update to Detail Duo on iOS yet, introducing a timeline, instant video backgrounds, and captions to help you record and edit engaging talking video faster.

LEARN MORE

COMMUNITY

“Content creators, don’t forget to check in with yourself and your own mental health. It’s totally okay to take a step back and just focus on yourself for a bit.”
—Creator Ianosity on the importance of self-care.

IN THE BIZ

After receiving harassment from a fan army of misogynistic trolls from FaZe Rain, gamer Grace Van Dien released a badass video about sexism in gaming.
The controversial Meta Verified is expanding globally, testing in India and rolling out to Brazil soon. Good ol’ Zuck said there will be no changes to previously verified accounts—a much-welcome deviation from the similarly despised launch of Twitter Blue.
Speaking of Twitter, Elon Musk said he wants to no longer allow blocking on the platform. Literally the worst move for creators ever, but okay.
TikTok is opening up its paywalling and 20-minute video features to more creators. It’ll be interesting to see how long-form content evolves on the platform, and how its subscriptions compare to other paywalled content offerings.
Apple announced a new augmented reality headset. The device will cost $3500 and release next year, and tech content creators are playing a monumental role in its promotion.
Twitch and the WWE signed a multi-year agreement for exclusive live content, signaling a new era of cooperation between the two groups after a contentious history.
Previously, WWE barred its wrestlers from having Twitch channels unless they gave a large cut of their earnings to the organization. Wrestlers-turned-creators criticized the policy, and soon they negotiated a three-way split with Twitch and the WWE taking much smaller cuts, allowing them to continue to stream.
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