Streamers in shock: KICK shuts down their main source of income
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15 May 2024 •
Reading time: 2 minutes After months of promoting gambling and casinos Twitch rival KICK has made a complete switch in strategy. As of May 13th. All French-speaking streamers are prohibited from playing live casino games on the platform.
KICK, a subsidiary of the online casino Stake.com, is well-known in the streaming world as a direct competitor to market leader Twitch. Until now, the platform allowed online gambling to be streamed without any restrictions. They even went so far as to promote this type of content to attract more casino streamers.
The post on X (formerly Twitter) by streamer Teufeurs had the effect of a bombshell in the streaming world. From now on, French-speaking streamers are banned from streaming gambling games or online casino games.
An unexpected decision
Gambling was a bit of KICK’s identity. The focus on gambling content was one of the main differentiating factors from Twitch. The decision to ban this content for French-speaking streamers is therefore surprising and has caused a stir.
The reasons for the ban have not been released. KICK has not yet issued an official statement on the reasons behind its decision. However, streamers speculate that it has to do with pressure from the French authorities who are concerned about the impact of gambling streams on vulnerable groups such as young people. It is also claimed that it could be a purely business decision to make the platform more attractive to a wider audience.
The consequences of the ban are not yet known. It is unclear how many French-speaking streamers will be affected by this. It remains to be seen whether it will lead to a decrease in the number of users on KICK. The future will show whether this ban will have a lasting impact on the platform.