It’s official: Twitch has cracked down on crypto casinos. The U.S.-based company implemented the block on crypto casinos on October 18, 2022 for gambling sites that offer slots, roulette, or other dice games. It will also apply to those sites that aren’t licensed in the USA or “other jurisdictions that provide adequate consumer protection.” These restrictions apply to unlicensed and unregulated operators.
Although the statement doesn’t explicitly mention a ban, it refers to crypto betting. It listed sites not licensed in recognized jurisdictions in its official announcement. These now-restricted sites were popular among streamers who use cryptocurrencies such as Ethereum (ETH) and Bitcoin for gambling purposes.
Crypto gambling is also becoming more popular on other streaming platforms like YouTube videos. Facebook Gaming and other smaller streaming platforms have joined the fray and are looking for solutions to this growing problem of cryptocurrency gambling activity.
According to the statement by Twitch, it will add more online gambling sites over time, and a comprehensive gambling policy will be published soon. The streaming platform’s new position on gambling sites will not affect websites that focus on sports betting, fantasy sports, or poker games.
What Does this Mean for Streamers?
According to reports on Big Win Board, the slots meta on Twitch has seen a significant drop in streaming activity by all the major stake/crypto streamers. As a result, the slots meta dropped to #48 at the time of the report – a major downgrade from its glory days before the crackdown on crypto casinos.
However, many fake streamers use view botting to generate views. This means that the actual numbers were always absurdly exaggerated by streamers to generate inflated numbers. By deleting them, the number should be closer to reality, though many streamers continue using view botting.
Many of the targeted fake streamers used similar tactics to drive traffic to Twitch from their DLive accounts. They did this by offering giveaways to encourage viewers to watch. These actions may constitute a violation of Twitch T&Cs of use.
Local Streamers Active on Twitch
Source: Kongebonus on Twitch
Harvested data indicates that many local casino streams are still dominant on Twitch. Kongebonus, for example, is a popular local streamer on Twitch. It features prominently as Norway’s largest casino community. Notably, specific operators will continue to be allowed on Twitch under the regulatory framework of fully licensed M.G.A. (Malta Gaming Authority) casinos.
Another popular selection is Brazucassino. Currently, Brazucassino boasts a following of 9.3K, with uploaded videos featuring thousands of views. This online casino’s recently streamed categories include Slots and Virtual Casinos. Brazucassino features Gold, Silver, and Bronze winners’ categories with an active leaderboard.
Other notable casino streamers on Twitch include jpliveslots from Denmark and Casino Daddy from Sweden.
Putting Safety & Security First
Who gets banned and who doesn’t?Some people try to avoid this ban by claiming they can stream as long as their crypto-casino isn’t on the forbidden casino list. According to Twitch:
“We consider many factors when determining whether a website is allowed, including safety protections such as deposit limits and waiting periods and age verification systems.”
It also means that there are likely to be more casinos added to the banned list. However, it’s safe to assume that most licensed U.S. and E.U. casinos are safe for the moment as long as they do not try to imitate Stake’s fraudulent marketing tactics.
Fake money streaming is a high-risk proposition. Twitch assures those types of users that they will be banned and risk irreparable harm to their credibility as streaming companies. Although several crypto streamers have shifted to DLive, that streaming platform only attracts a few viewers beyond the slots category. This curtails their view count and subscriber base. As a result, slots streamers are particularly at risk as they stand to lose their competitive advantage.
It is evident from recent events that certain game providers and online casinos have been more active in marketing themselves on Twitch. Two companies, in particular, stand out, Hacksaw Gaming and Pragmatic Play. These companies have been heavily rotated and are favored by fake crypto streamers. This is also true for the Government of Curacao casino operators, which are subject to different stringent regulations than EU-licensed ones.
These companies will attempt new marketing methods to promote their products, and there’s a good chance they are already recruiting new streamers. However, these marketing campaigns will not be as successful as they were in the past because it will be nearly impossible to get the support of popular Twitch streamers beyond the gambling meta. Twitch seems to be okay with the slots meta, provided they operate outside of the limelight. However, unnecessary attention can lead to a cornucopia of problems.
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