Asmongold, a popular World of Warcraft streamer, tweeted last week that Twitch should ban these streams.Online slots are big enough to warrant their own category in Twitch. However, some prominent names are asking for the platform's ban, as they encourage reckless behavior. Experts in gambling addiction have also taken note.The streamers are hoping to find the perfect combination to increase their number of flashy symbols as they roll by. Many times, thousands of people watch as it unfolds.Twitch can show you how someone plays online slots for hours, losing and winning thousands of dollars each time.Twitch must ban all gambling streams. The sheer amount of bullshit, pitfalls and confusion this will create over the next six months will cause Twitch to be in serious trouble in many ways that we don't even know. Just look at EU gambling laws to see how this could happen.Another top streamer, Pokimane took to her stream to critique Twitch partners who accept sponsorships from online casino sites.Let's face it, if you get a sponsorship offer from a casino, you are already multi-millionaire. "You need to be multi-multi-millionaire." She said.She said that streamers have many more income options than those who are ethically or morally insecure.This has been a major criticism of slot stream. Sometimes, players get deals from online casinos. They also offer viewers voucher codes that allow them to make extra money.Keith Whyte is the executive director of The National Council on Problem Gambling. This organization focuses on gambling addiction, but maintains a neutral position on gambling.BuzzFeed News reported that he believes the current environment encourages and may even exacerbates gambling addiction among vulnerable viewers, including children and adolescents.He stated that there is plenty of evidence to support the idea that watching gambling can cause you to want to gamble. It normalizes the act.He said, "You are more likely to be involved in the activity if you take fewer precautions."Legality is the other problem, he stated. Stake is an online casino that uses cryptocurrency and is the most popular slot platform on Twitch. It is illegal in the US but streamers can access it easily using a VPN. Kotaku reported earlier this week that streamers were offered thousands of dollars to access certain online casinos.BuzzFeed News reached Twitch for comment but they declined to comment. Although the site lists resources to help with gambling addiction, they are not available on gambling streams. Although the community guidelines ban illegal gambling, they do not mention any illegal activities.The guidelines state that streamers must adhere to FTC rules regarding disclosure of paid endorsements. However, these rules are not always followed.Whyte stated, "It is very obvious that there are a highly monetized environment of referrals, rakebacks, and paid promotion which provides very deceptive gaming content with no transparency and high risk for abuse by the promoters as well as addiction among the viewers."The criticism is well known to slot streamers. Trainwreck, a slots streamer, tweeted last week that he discourages others from gambling as he does. BuzzFeed News reached out to him but he did not respond.
