Twitch updates its policy to allow streamers to simultaneously stream on multiple platforms

On Friday, October 20, popular live streaming platform Twitch hosted day 1 of TwitchCon, its semi-annual gaming convention in Las Vegas. During the keynote session, the company announced a number of new updates that included new features for streamers, and viewers, as well as updation of its policies. During the event, Twitch also announced that it will finally allow the non-exclusive streamers to simulcast (simultaneously stream on different live streaming platforms at the same time). This comes as a breath of fresh air for some of the big-name content creators on the platform who were forced to stream at different schedules on different platforms.

Twitch also posted about all the new changes in its blog post. There, it stated, “As of today, you can now simulcast on any live streaming service. We believe that you should have the freedom to decide which services you want to live stream on”. Notably, in August, Twitch had updated its simulcasting policy to allow streamers to simultaneously on mobile services like TikTok and Instagram. It should be noted that streamers who have an exclusive deal with Twitch will still not be able to stream anywhere else.

Twitch finally allows streamers to simulcast at the TwitchCon

Recently, Twitch lost some of its most popular streamers such as xQc, Amouranth, and Nickmercs, who signed for its rival platform Kick. Streaming moving away from Twitch has many underlying reasons, but one of the most frustrating of them all is the inability to simulcast. Streamers end up streaming for 3-6 hours a day on a single platform. So, if they do not have a simulcast option available, they would have to give other platforms a similar amount of time to stay active and keep their subscribers. In some extreme cases, some streamers were even seen streaming for 12 hours a day.

While choosing not to stream on other platforms and building a stronger community on Twitch is an option, diversifying their time on other platforms allows creators to increase what they can earn. Considering the long hours of streaming that stop streamers from having a full-time career, financial gains become an important factor.

The TwitchCon also witnessed some other important announcements. For example, the platform updated its Off-Service Conduct Policy and added doxxing and swatting to the list of offenses it will enforce against. For the unaware, doxxing refers to the act of revealing identifying information about someone online to the public, and swatting is when someone makes a false report to emergency services in an attempt to bring about the dispatch of a large number of armed police officers (a SWAT team) to a given location. Both of these actions can cause serious harm to streamers, and now they are punishable offenses enforced by Twitch.