Twitch Bloodbath: Hundreds of streamers receive a DMCA notice, sends TimtheTatMan and others into a frenzy

Recently, Twitch has come under close scrutiny for quite a few streamer-related decisions that the platform has made. Streamers such as DrDisRespect, Alisha 12877 and Leafy, have all been banned under mysterious and/or problematic circumstances.

Moreover, we have also talked about some controversial streamers being given a new lease of life on Twitch. This includes streamer/YouTuber Onision, who has, in the past, been accused of ‘child-grooming’. Further, other controversies have come from the allegations of toxicity in the work culture of the organization. Regardless, there are other issues that Twitch has recently begun to take seriously as well.

Image Credits: Twitch

Twitch Bloodbath: Hundreds of Streamers receive a DMCA notice, sends TimtheTatMan and others in a frenzy

Back in July, Twitch had sent Digital Millennium Copyright Act (DMCA) notifications to various streamers, in an attempt to get them to take the content infringement policies of the platform more seriously. Most streamers inadvertently end up infringing copyrights by playing random music, or featuring other types of content.

Back then, quite a few streamers responded by deleting their entire content off the platform in a bid to escape the ‘action’ that Twitch had promised. This worked out the issue, as the content which had infringed the copyrights was no longer on the platform.

Now however, it has been reported that literally hundreds of streamers across the platform have received emails with DMCA takedown notifications. This has led to panic and frenzy, as Twitch has not specified what precise action the platform will be taking in case the streamers fail to oblige.

the Twitch DMCA bloodbath has begun, as hundreds of partnered streamers have received emails from Twitch as DMCA takedown notifications pic.twitter.com/zoIoI7Q7Xp

— Rod Breslau (@Slasher) October 20, 2020

According to the emails, all streamers who have uploaded content which infringes copyrights, have been told that they will not be given an opportunity to file a counter-claim. Instead, Twitch has themselves gone ahead and deleted the problematic content off their channels.

Prominent streamers such as TimTheTatman, Clix, and literally most notable Twitch streamers, have received these notices. However, contrary to how things appear, there might not be any reason to worry.

This content was identified and deleted for you, in accordance with its obligations under the DMCA. Going forward, Clips that are identified as having copyrighted music will be deleted without penalty to help ensure you do not receive DMCA notifications from rights holders.

— Twitch Support (@TwitchSupport) October 20, 2020

Verge has speculated that these notices are probably the result of various copyright claims that Twitch have received in the recent past. The law requires the platform to remove or block access to the content which they have been told infringes a copyright by the copyright holder.

No, the email was to confuse and frustrate everyone because you left out ALL important info regarding when, who, and what caused these DMCAs. This is unacceptable.

— Shannon (@ShannonZKiller) October 20, 2020

Moreover, as the platform has responded by removing the infringing content on its own, Twitch streamers can breathe easy, as they now will not need to delete any content on their own.

You can watch Esports Talk's video on the matter below.