Twitch is a streaming platform on which any creator can freely stream video-game content for the viewers of all different interests. While its main niche is video games, Twitch “streamers” can broadcast themselves doing anything. Some streamers specialize in food, music, or “just chatting,” a popular category on Twitch. Of all streaming services, Twitch has historically been the “alpha,” but other platforms such as Mixer and Youtube have made a push for the spotlight by poaching popular media personalities. Ninja and Shroud, two popular gamers, serve as an example of this, each signing eight-figure deals with the up-and-comer Mixer. Despite these deals, Twitch remained resilient and rightly so; Mixer was forced to shut down after failing to gain expected viewership, further cementing Twitch as the almighty streaming platform. However, it seems Twitch’s empire could soon fall due to its handling of DMCA laws, which could lead to major repercussions if not fixed in some way.
The DMCA, or the Digital Millennium Copyright Act, was enacted in 1998. Initially created to counteract piracy, the DMCA was supposed to protect all forms of media, like music, writing, art, photography, etc. On Twitch, its focus has shifted towards copyrighted music. Even though the act is older than most high school students, it has gone under no reform to accommodate modern entertainment. This is where the DMCA has become a problem for streamers and creators.
Twitch itself has its own information pertaining to how DMCA claims are processed, which can be found on the website. The Digital Millennium Copyright Act has become a relevant topic of discussion because of the sudden influx of copyright strikes on the platform, which even Twitch itself acknowledged. Before May of 2020, Twitch processed “fewer than 50” of these claims, but the value skyrocketed to over thousands of DMCA notifications each week,” which even includes clips as old as the platform itself. By complying with DMCA laws, Twitch must take down videos copyright holders believe “steal” their work.. After three violations of the DMCA rules, streamers will be permanently banned and removed from the platform. While these content creators have an ability to appeal these violations, requests to do so often reach deaf ears. On the surface, Twitch’s actions seem to be justified, but DMCA on Twitch is much more complicated.
The backlash and controversy associated with the situation comes from streamers who disagree with the manner in which Twitch handles the DMCA reports outside of the law. One of the most outspoken streamers about these issues is Charlie White (known as Moistcr1tikal), a creator who has amassed almost two million followers. Although his claims on the topic seem quite extreme, he consistently delivers facts and examples that make his arguments valid. White believes that the current DMCA laws are “primitive and archaic,” and that there haven’t been any notable changes to make them applicable to today’s society. Although the law was initially created to prevent piracy of music, the “corrupt music industry” has taken advantage of DMCA laws to generate more revenue by filing questionable DMCA claims. All media platforms have copyright claim systems in place, but White compares the DMCA situation on Twitch to a “firing squad.” The majority of copyright strikes are unreasonably strict and unnecessary, which forces all Twitch streamers, regardless of size, to take down all videos out of fear of a potential ban.
Twitch has encouraged streamers to stop playing music in streams. This has raised issues for some content creators, as music can be an integral portion of the stream. Even some of the games that streamers play have copyrighted music in it, which makes the stream eligible for a DMCA takedown. For instance, the video game Destiny 2 has a song that was produced by a third-party company, so streamers had portions of their Destiny content muted or removed - the video game may have rights to the song, but the streamers do not. Twitch itself also acknowledges this by requesting streamers to review and delete any historical videos that have music in it, regardless of how old the videos are.
Charlie White believes that most of the problems lie on the shoulders of Twitch. Even though the DMCA laws can only go as far as requesting that videos be taken down or be muted, Twitch takes the extra step to ban streamers. Being unable to produce content for viewers, streamers are essentially cut off from the Internet for however long the ban is. For those who rely on streaming for an income, this is the equivalent of being fired from a job because the boss disapproves of how certain actions are completed. The bans are not always deserved, and as a result, the platform has already begun to lose some of its population because of these preposterous regulations. Streamers should not have to take the blame for a copyrighted soundtrack that they have no control over; they are merely consumers playing a game and simultaneously giving it lots of exposure.
Others think this influx of DMCA claims was to be expected. Initially, some streamers like Michael Grzesiek (known as Shroud on Twitch) believed that creators are not exempt to the law. Streaming is a new profession, but being famous on the Internet does not provide streamers with any more leeway than the average citizen. He, among other veteran streamers, were forced to make the difficult decision to delete years-old videos out of fear of getting banned or given a copyright strike. Even though it is a multi-billion dollar company, Grzesiek firmly believes that Twitch could easily go out of business if lawsuits were filed against them regarding DMCA.
Although streamers are quite irate about the whole situation, Twitch is also a business that needs money in order to keep the platform running. Even if it is miles above all of its other competitors, Twitch is miniscule compared to the music industry. From the viewpoint of Twitch, it is possible that the excessive DMCA protocols are put into place to protect themselves from DMCA lawsuits that could make them lose money. With our reliance on the Internet increasing by the day, multiple streamers believe DMCA laws should be changed to better favor them while still adhering to the original message of preventing piracy. Even though “King Twitch” is undeniably the best streaming platform, with a caring and supportive community in most streams, DMCA copyright claims cannot simply be disregarded: the Achilles heel that vastly impacts the Twitch community.