If you have been using Twitch or you have heard of this platform now you know that gambling streaming is not an option anymore. How this affects UK players and why this had to happen will be the main topic for today. Below we are going to explain the iGaming ads ban and also the specifics.
Reasons Behind The Ban
As we have mentioned earlier all gambling streaming options are not allowed on Twitch. The reason behind that is simple and obvious. The slot category is more than just popular. In one week it will be visited by over 47.000 people. The massive jump in popularity occurred in July of 2021 when the number of users jumped from 7300 to impressive 39.500 users!
But, the company discovered that there were a lot of shady deals between popular streamers and the casinos. For instance, according to WIRED Adin Ross, a popular streamer from Florida obtained around $1.5 million from a company called Duelbits which is a gambling site. It also doesn’t have to do anything with US regulators and the platform is not licensed by any of the local authorities.
WIRED also discovered that 64 popular streamers have been doing the same thing. We are referring to 64 popular users of the 100 most popular on the platform hence you can get a better idea of how popular this option was. Their streams were seen by 100.000 people at the same time. An issue here is that 21% of them were people between 13 and 17 years of age!
These streamers were paid by massive gambling and betting sites. The idea was to promote gambling and attract new players. We all know how much Twitch is popular and how big an effect streamers have. By sharing their gambling, new users will want to try the same deal and would like to enjoy online gambling. It looked like a massive and huge deal that would make a massive difference. Sadly, Twitch has been used by a lot of people under 18 years of age which makes this type of promotion problematic in the lack of a better word.
This is just one small example of the promotions related to gambling. A lot of streamers got paid for the same thing. Usually, they were paid by crypto casinos and betting sites. As such, Twitch officials decided to put an end to this. The idea or the main goal of the platforms wasn’t gambling hence these promotions are not ideal and they should be kept away from viewers, especially younger ones.
How it Affects UK Players
Now when you know all about the ban and the reason behind it you should know how it will affect players from the United Kingdom. We are referring to gamblers and bettors. Well, they will be affected but not as much as you may think.
A small percentage of players have been using Twitch to see how to play a game, how it all looks like, and where to play. But, not all players did this and as a matter of fact, only a small percentage of UK players did it. Another reason why players watched steams was some special bonuses, many no deposit UK bonuses without GamStop were exclusive and you could claim it only with a special code provided by the streamer. Now, they will not have this option and they will have to obtain the same data elsewhere. But, this is not a big issue, especially in the United Kingdom. There are a lot of gambling sites and they have been using a lot of different mediums to get the promotions they need. For instance, a lot of gambling companies have been using football clubs to get the ads needed and to attract gamblers.
The ban here doesn’t have anything to do with the sites where UK players can gamble. The only issue is the lack of ability to see your favorite streamer playing at online casinos and winning. But, you can still gamble and you can choose any casino you like. There are almost countless options.
Keep in mind that UK players should play only at casinos that have the UKGC license This means that the sites are licensed, they are tested for fairness and they come with all games approved and tested as well. In other words, it means that players can win and withdraw their winnings without any issues or complications. If you really like a casino you can play at it if it has some other license. It still means the same things.
The Final Word
The Twitch ban of gambling is an interesting topic and one that has to be mentioned more often. But, it is not a huge issue for UK players. However, for some reason, it is still possible to advertise gambling platforms for example during the big eSports events. They can still play at the same casinos and enjoy the same perks. As a matter of fact, the only issue is the lack of ability to watch well-known streamers gambling. Is that a problem for you? For most gamblers, it is an irrelevant thing but for some, it is an issue.
