Minecraft is one of the most culturally significant video games in recent memory. With a devoted and creative fanbase known for using the game to create everything from the White House to the temple of Khonshu from Moon Knight, it's hardly surprising that the game is a popular one for streamers. One highly prominent streamer, though, has fallen afoul of Twitch and had their account banned.
Minecraft streamer Dream is virtually synonymous with the game. Ask anybody even remotely familiar with the community to name a Minecraft streamer, and it's likely they'll come up with Dream. Despite his popularity, he's still not impervious to Twitch's rules and has found his account on the platform banned as of May 3.
The exact reason for the ban is not yet known, though the streaming platform states it's for a "violation of Twitch's Community Guidelines." The popular Twitch streamer and Game Awards Nominee hasn't had his main account suspended, but rather the account that was banned in this case was his alt account "dreamwastaken." He seemed to take the ban in stride, playfully responding to a Twitter thread about the ban with, "WHOS GONNA STOP ME."
It would appear the ban may be due to Dream playing licensed music, and was therefore banned for a DMCA violation. The irony is that the song in question looks as though it may have been "Heat Waves" by British indie rock group Glass Animals; a song that has famously been remixed to be about the streamer himself.
Twitch is a platform that has allowed many content creators the avenue to get their work seen and be able to make a career from it. While no creator should be above the rules laid down by the platform, Twitch may wish to work to take care of its relationship with its most popular streamers. Proposed revenue changes from Twitch have already disturbed some prominent Twitch personalities, and things like banning channels for playing music that has a direct association with the streamer themselves may create further unrest.
Many streamers can, and may, begin to start putting their content elsewhere. Some are already publicly stating their intent to take lucrative streaming contracts with YouTube, and this would certainly be an option for Dream who already has just under 30 million subscribers on the site. Fans of his content won't ever have problems enjoying it; the only thing that may change is where they enjoy it. This incident with Twitch doesn't seem to have bothered Dream too much, so he may not be about to make any drastic changes, but the wider streaming landscape may be on the verge of shifting.
Minecraft is available now on Mobile, PC, PS4, Switch, and Xbox One.
Source: Dexerto