Twitch streamer JapImport applies for partner and gets accidentally banned for "hateful username"

A Twitch streamer by the name of Michael “JapImport” ended up being temporarily banned on the Amazon-owned platform. The streamer, who is a professional League of Legends coach, got banned shortly after finally reaching the qualifications for partner status. Not only was he banned for allegedly having a “hateful name”, but Twitch also denied his initial appeal. However, it wasn’t all negative for the streamer. It would take about a day for this to be ironed out, upsetting the streamer as well as his audience.

While it turned out okay for the Twitch streamer, it baffled him that the streaming outlet would manually ban him, deny an appeal, and even apologize in such a short time.

---

Twitch streamer JapImport banned for “hateful” name after applying for partner

On October 10, 2023, Twitch streamer JapImport applied for partner status on the platform. With around 5,000 followers, the Slay the Spire streamer and League of Legends coach would be permanently banned just two days later. According to the notification he received, it was for having a hateful username.

Michael’s original Twitch name likely had to do with his Japanese ancestry, but for unknown reasons, someone at Twitch decided it was an offensive name. In one of his tweet responses, the Twitch streamer said he had no problem changing his name, but to not be warned in the first place was confusing.

The streamer and his fans were confused by this ban (Image via X)

Quite a few users posted in solidarity and support for the then-banned Twitch streamer. According to JapImport, they also denied his appeal. At that point in time, however, he could make a new account, provided it didn’t break the rules.

Over the past year or two, Twitch has cracked down hard on offensive usernames. One prominent example was Doaenel, who was banned and renamed after applying for partnership status. Things seemed hopeless for the streamer, but thankfully, Twitch came through in the end.

---

Twitch streamer JapImport rebrands to JapaneseExport, after being unbanned

Thankfully, it was all a huge misunderstanding (Image via X)

Late on October 13, 2023, the streamer revealed he had been banned mistakenly and that he was free to create content on the platform again. It turns out the name was not offensive and that it was purely by mistake. It confused the streamer, who asked if Twitch simply didn’t look at the appeal at all.

Even with a rebrand, fans were glad the streamer was back on the platform (Image via X)

Many Twitter users once again showed up, this time to celebrate. The streamer would then state he’s going to rebrand to make sure something like this doesn’t happen again. He’s now known on Twitch as JapaneseExport and has resumed his Slay the Spire content creation.

---

Accidental Twitch bans aren’t a new thing on the platform, although they don’t happen frequently. Streamers have been accidentally banned for a wide variety of reasons, such as ZeplaHQ being banned for impersonating herself.