LogInStarting Friday, streamers won't be allowed to project in-game footage onto their bodies.
Streaming platform Twitch has once again updated its rules regarding sexual content, cracking down on streamers projecting gameplay footage onto their bodies by banning content that focuses on intimate body parts for a prolonged period.
For the past few months, Twitch has been exploring the issue of sexual content on the platform, trying to find its footing and establish the boundaries of what should and shouldn't be permitted. In December 2023, for example, the platform relaxed its policies, effectively allowing for more nudity in streams as long as appropriate classification labels are used. However, after several streamers pushed it a bit too far, Twitch reversed its decision, banning even implied nudity in January of this year.
Recently, a new trend emerged where streamers projected gameplay footage onto their breasts, buttocks, and other intimate body parts, using themselves as green screens. This trend faced community backlash, with many criticizing both the streamers for exploiting their bodies for subscriptions and donations and the platform for allowing it.
In what seems to be a response to this criticism, Twitch has changed its Community Guidelines once more, prohibiting content that "focuses on clothed intimate body parts such as the buttocks, groin, or breasts for extended periods of time" starting Friday, March 29. However, it's important to note that what constitutes "focuses" and how long qualifies as an "extended period" hasn't been clarified, leaving room for interpretation.
"Our Community Guidelines are designed to help make Twitch a welcoming place," the team stated in the announcement. "Content on Twitch is always evolving, and we want to make sure our rules work as intended and keep up with emerging behaviors. When needed, we make updates to our rules to capture those shifts in behavior, and so it's clear to the community what is allowed."
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