Earlier this week, Twitch streamer Jenelle 'Indiefoxx' Dagres received her sixth ban of the year, and it's led to other content creators coming out to protest Twitch's unequal banning system. Upon Indiefoxx's fifth ban, Félix 'xQc' Lengyel criticised the streaming platform's "double-standard" between creators, and now Natalia 'Alinity' Mogollon has done the same.
Alinity is no stranger to controversy herself. The 33-year-old has faced a huge amount of criticism on Twitch for various situations relating to alleged abuse of her pet cat and a situation where she accidentally showed part of a nipple on stream. Twitch did not penalise her originally for the latter offence but Alinity asked the site to give her a ban to which they responded with a 24-hour suspension. The streamer thought this was too short and continued with a self-implemented three-day ban.
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Alinity has now come forward to criticise the treatment of streamers pushing the boundaries of Twitch content, notably Indiefoxx and Amouranth. Indiefoxx especially has upset fellow streamers as she has received six bans within the first six months of this year, including a recent ban for her ASMR yoga streams where she sits in stretching positions and licks ASMR microphones. The ban system, in theory, is a 'three strikes and you're out' arrangement. This obviously hasn't applied to Indiefoxx or Amouranth
On Twitter, Alinty says: "So is Twitch gonna do something about repeat offenders? Or is it fair game for everyone to start stretching the [Terms of Service] as thin as they can?" She continues the thread saying: "I've been benefited by (sic) this blurred line before. I then thought it was messed up and I still do. We need consistency and equal treatment. What's the point of the TOS then?"
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Other creators and viewers have expressed frustration with the unequal treatment some streamers receive. Sometimes accounts on Twitch seem to be permabanned without warning, while one streamer who responded to Alinity says she was banned for FX makeup of a hand - and even when providing proof that it was a prop, Twitch rejected an appeal.
Perhaps we'll see a change in Twitch's ban implementation in future, but for now, the company's decisions and TOS practises are nebulous and unclear for those watching and creating content on the site.
Featured Image Credit: Alinity / Indiefoxx