New Twitch Feature Is Making It Easier To Ban Streamers For DMCA
The iron fist of Twitch is coming down hard on its streamers, as once again, the streaming giant is at war with its content creators over the Digital Millennium Copyright Act. For longer than we care to remember, Twitch has had a firm stance on potential DMCA violations. Instead of helping streamers and working in tandem with those that keep Twitch running, the company has introduced a divisive new feature that could see DMCA takedowns become even more commonplace.
Last year, Leslie "Fuslie" Fu was hit by several DMCA takedown warnings for songs like Ariana Grande's "7 Rings" appearing in her clips. At the time, Fuslie was worried her only option would be to delete every clip she's ever made. Seth "Scump" Abner was also one of the big names hit with a takedown, in what Rod "Slasher" Breslau described as a DMCA bloodbath. The safest option is to make sure no music is playing at all in your streams, but as we all know, that's easier said than done.
How does the new Twitch feature make DMCA bans easier?
On May 4, former Twitch admin @Saysera shared his concerns that Twitch has introduced a new page where you can report potential DMCA violations. Although it's designed to be used to stop someone actually stealing your work, the worry is that it will see a boom in DMCA takedowns. Added to this, there's a potential for vengeful viewers/rival streamers to report someone for even a minor violation.
The copyright claims page allows you to file a "notification of claimed infringement against the unauthorized use of your copyrighted work". Right now, you can only report for live streams and previously recorded videos, but it's still a move in the wrong direction. On the plus side, you have to actually own the work being infringed or be "authorized to act on behalf of the owner of an exclusive right that is allegedly infringed” - under punishment or perjury - so that should stop vengeful reports.
Saysera also explained, "This new page requires a twitch account to log in, so it seems to be targeted toward actual users/creators of the site more than rights holder (such as music labels)". Even though there's the idea it'll be better for stopping people from stealing your artwork and emotes, the general consensus is that we'll start seeing more DMCA takedowns.
What have Twitch users said about the new DMCA takedown feature?
It looks like the new DMCA takedown has claimed its first victim. It didn't take long, but William "WillNeff" Neff was slapped with a violation when he streamed a clip of Samurai Jack. An enraged Neff had some choice words for Twitch and pointed out the clip is readily available on YouTube. And so, it begins!
For now, the new Twitch DMCA feature has gone largely unnoticed because it hasn't been formally announced by Twitch in a blog post. Still, fans were quick to make their feelings clear. One critic wrote, "It's @Youtube all over again, now about to be a thousand times worse with @Twitch's terrible ways to counter false DMCA/Copyright claims. A riot is going to break out on Twitch with absolute certainty, just when is the question". Another added, "Uh oh look what Twitch snuck in while you were distracted by the hot tub crisis".
The mention of "hot tub crisis" is a barbed response toward the apparent hot tub meta, which is the current fire Twitch is trying to extinguish. Here, there have been concerns over what is deemed as appropriate clothing to be worn during streams. Bathing suits are classed as appropriate in the right conditions, which has led to a deluge of creators stripping off and hopping in the hot tub for their streams.
Alongside complaints it violates Twitch's own rules on "sexually explicit" content, the platform says it's watching the hot tub meta "closely". It seems that as everyone rows about wet t-shirt competitions, Twitch has snuck in its new DMCA feature. We have to agree, this probably won't end well for anyone.
Images via Twitch
