Twitch, the world’s premier video game live-streaming service, has decided that it will begin banning users for harassment, abuse, and other offenses that don’t even take place on its platform. This is according to updated guidelines that the service published earlier this week, which includes a section warning that it will take action against misconduct that occurs entirely off Twitch. The company defended the decision by explaining that it was attempting to build a safer platform for everyone.
Twitch is taking serious action against severe misconduct that happens away from Twitch. https://t.co/qgcchbHBWt
— PC Gamer (@pcgamer) April 9, 2021
We will now enforce against serious offenses that pose a substantial safety risk to the Twitch community, even if these actions occur entirely off Twitch. Examples of these behaviors include:
• Deadly violence and violent extremism
• Terrorist activities or recruiting
• Explicit and/or credible threats of mass violence (i.e. threats against a group of people, event, or location where people would gather).
• Leadership or membership in a known hate group
• Carrying out or acting as an accomplice to non-consensual sexual activities and/or sexual assault
• Sexual exploitation of children, such as child grooming and solicitation/distribution of underage sexual materials
• Actions that would directly and explicitly compromise the physical safety of the Twitch community, such as threatening violence at a Twitch event
• Explicit and/or credible threats against Twitch, including Twitch staff