Twitch has announced fresh guidelines for branded content and said the announcement has not been well received within the streaming community. Sponsored streams play a crucial role in generating income for content creators. Sponsors represent a major source of revenue alongside donations and subscriptions and the freshly introduced will create a major dent in the income of streamers moving forward.
What is allowed?
- Branded window on your Channel Page
- Promoting products in your stream.
- Playing sponsored games.
- Endorsing services.
- Using links to promote products/services.
With said guidelines, streamers won’t enjoy the same freedom they once had regarding branded content given the new guidelines will restrict several aspects of brand promotion including the specific dimensions of sponsored logos displayed during streams and broader limitations such as the prohibition of banner ads and pre-recorded video ads on Twitch.
What is not allowed?
- On-stream brand windows cannot be over 3% of the player window.
- Streamers cannot play video ads directly into their streams.
- Streamers cannot display ‘banner’ ads directly in the player window.
- Streamers cannot play audio ads directly in their streams.
Judging by the reaction from the community, the new rules hold the potential to push several streamers out of the door given they will have a direct negative impact on everyone’s revenue.
With competitors closing in on Twitch’s biggest names, this might work in their favor and help the likes of Kick and Rumble rope the departing content creators in. If Twitch goes through with the plan, we might see the beginning of its end.
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