Twitch is not responsible for Pokimane's ban

She is.

(Photo credit: Pokimane, Twitch)

With the recent news that Pokimane was banned by Twitch for live streaming Avatar: The Last Airbender, somehow people are trying to blame Twitch.

Surprised?

You shouldn’t be. This is quite literally the movie version of the same experience we all came to be well versed in via the DMCA fiasco which Twitch was also blamed for. While there are some decent arguments about purchasing licensing, etc. by Twitch for some music — this is not it.

Streamers choosing to broadcast full movies and TV shows are willingly choosing to make poor decisions that can and very likely will lead to bans such as the one that was handed down to Pokimane.

Licensing is important. It’s what allows companies to make money from their products and prevent anyone from simply grabbing it and presenting it to profit off of it.

In reality, it’s very similar to how people riot if someone steals someone else’s emotes or other artwork. We don’t like that, do we? No. We get upset, we call out people for not giving credit for photos or citing their sources.

So why do folks defend people in this regard? Why do people jump to the aid of Pokimane as if she wasn’t willfully taking licensed content and broadcasting it for free to thousands and thousands of people and in turn making profit (via ads, subs obtained during that time, etc) that the rightful owners see no part of?

This needs to stop. Yes, practices throughout the industry with DMCA’s and other outdated processes could use an overhaul…but they haven’t yet and this isn’t one at the top of the list in my opinion.