In late 2022, Tyler Faraz Niknam, popularly known as Trainwreckstv, expressed his displeasure a few months after Twitch updated their terms of service and started cracking down on unlicensed gambling content. Stake.com was one of the targets of Twitch, the platform sponsoring Trainwreckstv at the time – and in light of this decision, the streamer decided to take his talent to Kick.
Although the transition was never truly completed, it was not to be the end of the controversy surrounding Trainwreckstv. On November 9, 2024, Trainwreckstv's Twitch channel was banned due to user spamming during a live stream Rust an event that marked the streamer's first ban in over five years. The most recent time was in 2017, when his account was put to the sword after several comments about female streamers that Twitch deemed misogynistic.
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Trainwreckstv's Twitch Ban and the Context Behind It
Trainwreckstv's ban came when he was getting into trouble Rust an event that was supposed to take place between November 8 and 18 Rust AK-47 Blue Gem skin for viewers who have spent an hour on his stream, modeled after the highly sought after CS2 weapon. However, that special event essentially came to a screeching halt when Twitch suspended his channel for just one day, citing user spam as the reason for the ban.
According to Twitch, user spam can include a variety of activities, including excessive self-promotion, intrusive use of chatbots, and redirecting viewers to other platforms. Although the definitive reason for the suspension was not made clear at the time, in the case of Trainwreck, the ban appears to be related to his subtle promotion of Kick.com, Twitch's main competitor in the streaming space. Finally, Twitch sent an email to Trainwreckstv stating the reasons for their action, and the clause that stood out the most was “Redirecting users to a live stream on another service via links in your Twitch stream, such as overlays, QR codes, broadcast titles. and launch notification”. This means that anything that suggests a Twitch streamer is directing viewers to switch to Kick can be considered a violation of their service.
After the three-day ban, Trainwreckstv took to social media to express his frustration, stating that he would have liked a warning, especially as he was well-behaved on the platform and was in the middle of a 10-day event. He also hinted that there was more to the timing of the ban when he commented on his Kick stream, “I know it's targeted because I know my accounts, it's not an automatic ban.” He also noted that he's been one of the top streamers on the platform for a long time and the ban coincided with the peak of his viewership.
The Pushback Against Twitch and Trainwreckstv's Restoration
Trainwreckstv has had their Kick stream link in their Twitch title for a while now, and while it violates Twitch's policies, many other streamers use the same conversion strategy with impunity. This incident is also consistent with a long list of scenarios where Twitch is inconsistent with suppressing certain things. When Twitch cracked down on gambling sites in 2022, there were still many streamers who ran these gambling streams and managed to get away with it.
The ban was originally supposed to last for three days, but was lifted earlier than expected in the early hours of November 10. After restoring his account, Trainwreckstv thanked his fans for their support and suggested that the public outcry surrounding his social media post and ban may have influenced Twitch's decision to reverse it so quickly. Trainwreckstv has since resumed Rust event on November 11th, with the giveaway still ongoing.