Twitch has launched a brand new ‘hot tubs’ streaming category following a recent controversy and pushback from advertisers.
Earlier this week, Twitch removed advertisement monetisation from one of the platform’s top female streamers, Kaitlyn “Amouranth” Siragusa, after her streams were deemed “not advertiser-friendly” after she was taking part in the trend dubbed the “hot tub meta”.
The conversation has also caused confusion as Twitch has strict guidelines when it comes to sexually suggestive content and nudity on its platform.
However, following the controversy, Twitch has since released a new dedicated category called ‘Pools, Hot Tubs, and Beaches’.
In a new blog post, Twitch said: “Over the past few weeks, we’ve seen and had many conversations about Hot Tub streams, and we want to address it candidly.”
While the streaming site has guidelines about sexually suggestive content, Twitch has said that “being found to be sexy by others is not against our rules” and it “will not take action” against anyone for their “perceived attractiveness”.
The platform has also acknowledged the confusion, however under the sites current ‘Nudity & Attire’ and ‘Sexually Suggestive Content’ policies, streamers “may appear in swimwear in contextually appropriate situations” including at the beach or in a hot tub.
Twitch also explained that the platform had recently suspended advertising on a few channels that were flagged by a majority of their advertiser base and failed to notify them.
The platform says “it was a mistake” not to inform streamers and Amouranth’s ads have since been reinstated to her channel.
Elsewhere, Twitch has announced its new policy that will ban users for misconduct, even if it happens off the platform.
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