Twitch Poker has dodged a huge bullet as it is exempt from the upcoming ban of online gambling on the Amazon-owned streaming platform. The Twitch Twitter account announced on Tuesday that from October 18 streaming of certain games and websites would be prohibited.
Twitch Poker Exempt from Platform Gambling Ban
Wow. Crazy times in the streaming world. Looks like poker is safe.
Thoughts on this? https://t.co/wL6gUTXKe3
— KMart – 🤠 (@KevinRobMartin) September 20, 2022
For the last couple of months, there has been an ongoing discussion on the morality of allowing gambling on the Twitch platform, specifically when it comes to the likes of slots.
However, a few days ago everything blew up when streamer “ItsSliker”—real name Abraham Jehad Mohammed—was forced to admit he scammed his followers out of thousands of dollars to gamble with, perhaps as much as $300,000.
He said:
“I used to gamble a lot of my money. Basically, all my Twitch money. I would come across streamers and ask them if I could borrow money. I wouldn’t give them the reason obviously. Because it was gambling, I would lie to them.”
“This is what gambling has done for me…shit is dangerous. This is the epitome of a fucking gambling addict. I used to lie to my views and say to my views ‘I used to gamble a long time ago’ it was a lie. I used to continuously gamble.”
The news led to many of Twitch’s top performers to lead calls for an outright ban on gambling.
Controversially, Mohammed revealed that an unnamed casino has now offered him sponsorship and to pay off all his gambling debts.
Twitch Poker Streamers Rally the Cause
There must have been a few nervous poker streamers following the uproar, praying for news that their income wouldn’t take a massive hit if there was an overreaction.
Jaime Staples took the time to make a video explaining why poker is a skill game and Fintan Hand was quick to point out that poker should never fall in the same category as slots.
“I haven’t really caught up with the drama on Twitch surrounding gambling. Seeing a lot of calls for gambling on Twitch to be banned. I would like to think, given we are in a different category, Poker won’t fall under the same blanket term. It’s so much different than slots.”
I want to add to the gambling conversation on #twitch pic.twitter.com/UP8YIEsQxI
— Jaime Staples (@jaimestaples) September 19, 2022
And for anyone that may not know about gambling and the difference between poker and everything else in a casino, here is a simple explanation as to why it is different: https://t.co/hKPuOFcwjS pic.twitter.com/ZFxBc54l3k
— Jaime Staples (@jaimestaples) September 19, 2022
The new regulations will take effect on October 18 and it looks certain, for now at least, that poker, sports betting, and fantasy sports will remain exempt from any ban.
- Get the best rakeback deals
- View all poker strategy articles
- View the latest poker news
- Watch more poker videos
- Get the biggest poker bonus
- Watch the best Twitch Poker streamers
Terms and conditions apply. New customer offer and 18+ only. Please gamble responsibly! Should you require help regarding your betting pattern, visit www.begambleaware.org
