Cassie Gardner 
Twitch surprised streamers at TwitchCon 2023 by nixing the ban on simulcasting to other social media platforms.
It was previously known that Twitch was protective of its content, not letting anyone who was a Twitch partner or affiliate broadcast themselves simultaneously on another streaming site. As of June 2023, simulcasting against the ToS, with streamers risking an account suspension if they decided to simulcast anyway. The only exception came in August 2023 which allowed simulcasting to primarily mobile-based platforms such as TikTok.
As more streamers sign non-exclusive contracts with competing streaming site Kick, Twitch is now updating its terms of service to allow simulcasting for all Twitch streamers. The only exception that will remain is with any streamer that has an exclusive streaming contract. All other streamers that wish to offer their content on multiple platforms can now do so.
Is simulcasting allowed on Twitch?
As of October 20, 2023, Twitch streamers without exclusive contracts can now simulcast to other livestreaming platforms including Kick, YouTube, and Facebook.
Twitch has rolled back a decision from June 2023 to now let all streamers simulcast their content, with the exception of those in exclusivity contracts. As part of TwitchCon, Twitch announced a variety of updates to the platform that streamers and viewers could expect, including the decision to allow for multicasting. Former top streamer Tyler “Ninja” Blevins made a move of this nature in 2022, dropping Twitch partner status in order to stream simultaneously on Twitch, YouTube, Facebook, and other platforms.
Prior to this, in order to abide by Twitch’s terms of service, streamers were allowed to stream to multiple sites but not at the same time. This was decided as Twitch “[believed] engaging with two streams at once can lead to a sub-optimal experience for your community.”
With the newest update also comes a list of guidelines to “ensure that the Twitch user experience is not [compromised].” The list includes directions to maintain the user experience for viewers on Twitch’s platform.
Twitch reveals new simulcasting rules
Twitch’s rules for simulcasting include quality standards and a ban on trying to move viewers to other platforms.
Twitch requires anyone simulcasting to maintain the quality of their stream such that it is equal to or greater than what is seen on other platforms. Also, streamers may not link out to other streaming sites to direct traffic away from Twitch. They also cannot use third-party apps that merge content from multiple platforms, most notably showing the chats from other sites.
Included in the FAQs for the new simulcasting guidelines, Twitch adds that any streamer with an exclusivity contract will still not be able to simulcast. There is also additional information on the specifics of linking to other streaming sites and the ability to use third-party apps to merge chats for personal use.
The step in allowing simulcasts can possibly become a big one for streamers going forward. Instead of needing to juggle streaming on Kick or Twitch, big names with non-exclusive contracts can now maintain both followings without the hassle. This also comes at a time when Twitch has been rolling back on offering streamers large contracts and may help mitigate a mass exodus to other platforms.
Once TwitchCon 2023 wraps up, fans will get a better idea of what it means for streamers to be allowed to multicast. Many streamers already have YouTube channels to showcase their VOD content and it could become an avenue for many to start multicasting.
