The streamer Félix “xQc” Lengyel received another Twitch ban on Wednesday, July 28, 2021. However, the break from Twitch lasted only 5 hours: xQc illegally streamed the Olympic Games on his Twitch channel. But the clips related to the ban are still on his channel.
Who is the streamer?
- xQc is a former Overwatch pro who had to end his career in the shooter early due to lack of impulse control. After several suspensions from the Overwatch League due to outbursts and insults, his team kicked him out in March 2018. He then became a full-time streamer.
- The lack of impulse control does not seem to bother his Twitch viewers; they actually enjoy it when their streamer gets really worked up. Over the past few years, xQc has become the most watched streamer on Twitch. This is also because he streams an incredible amount, with streams often lasting up to 16 hours. Additionally, xQc is a gifted entertainer who resonates particularly well and authentically with younger viewers.
- xQc often appears hyper and restless. He frequently acts thoughtlessly and gets temporary bans on Twitch because of it. For instance, he once defeated a virtual schoolgirl in “three wins” and accepted her offer to undress naked. Another time, he was banned for showing mating monkeys in a clip.
xQc comments on the Olympic Games
What is he banned for this time? xQc watched several clips of the Olympic Games on his stream on Wednesday. The International Olympic Committee (IOC) is known not to appreciate this. They issue copyright complaints (DMCA claims) to Twitch and force the streaming platform to act.
xQc trying to understand the offside rule in football: “Offside is when the ball lands on top of the net”
Twitch has been having some issues with copyright recently and is therefore sensitive to such complaints.
xQc does not seem to be the only Twitch streamer who got into trouble because of the Olympics: An English site reports that several streamers received DMCA bans. They even accuse the IOC of abusing copyright rules on Twitch (via twitter).
Twitch streamer promises to be “better and smarter”
This is what xQc says: He tweets as usual completely relaxed in “All-Caps”: xQc believes he received a “live copyright ban”. He thought he had taken the “necessary steps” and was in the clear. He did not expect the ban and believes he could have easily avoided it, he writes on Twitter.
He apologizes to his viewers and promises to be “better/smarter” and to follow the rules more closely next time.
What makes the ban so strange? There are two strange things:
- The ban lasted only 4 hours and 55 minutes – that is an unusual length; even the shortest bans last at least 24 hours.
- The video clips in which xQc shows the Olympic Games are still visible on his channel – they should actually have been removed.
Since Twitch never comments on bans, it is a mystery what happened there. Perhaps Twitch lifted the ban, or the IOC withdrew the complaint. Nobody knows – even xQc himself seems to be unaware.
On reddit, there is discussion about the possibility that xQc, as the biggest streamer in the world, could receive some special treatment. Generally, it is clear that the Olympic Games cannot simply be streamed on Twitch. So the legitimacy of the ban is not questioned.
What is behind this: The copyright rights for such streaming events seem sometimes so complex that no one can see through them, neither Twitch, nor xQc, nor the IOC.
xQc seems to have consciously taken the risk of streaming the Olympic Games worldwide and receiving a ban. He probably thought that it would be enough to delete the stream recording later to avoid getting a strike.
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