SquishyMuffinz banned from Twitch following DMCA crackdown

Twitch sent out emails to all streaming channels where DMCA content or strikes were detected on past VODs (Image Credit: Liquipedia)
Twitch sent out emails to all streaming channels where DMCA content or strikes were detected on past VODs (Image Credit: Liquipedia)

SquishyMuffinz was banned from Twitch following what supposedly was a crackdown on content with a DMCA.

There has recently been a massive wave of trouble for Twitch due to DMCA laws that now seem to be enforced by music companies on a large scale. This is a first for Twitch in scale as the streaming platform has been largely negligent in the use of copyrighted content by thousands of streamers on the site.

In order to finally comply, Twitch sent out emails to all streaming channels where DMCA content or strikes were detected on past VODs. There was initial confusion as to whether Twitch would automatically delete the content on their own, but it appears that there isn't an algorithm strong enough in place to do so. And if there is, Twitch won't be doing it all themselves.

Streamers, including Dr Lupo and TimTheTatman, took matters into their own hands and deleted every single one of their past VODs. Streamers like SquishyMuffinz and Nickmercs appear to have kept their VODs up for the time being. While Nick has been vocal about the situation, SquishyMuffinz appears to be a victim of the DMCA storm.


SquishyMuffinz vows to delete all clips and VODs after Twitch unbans him

In a tweet from the Rocket League pro and streamer, SquishyMuffinz claimed he was banned from Twitch and asked if there was anything he could do about the situation.

In the replies, he went on to say that it was specifically an account termination. Given that he was unaware of why he was banned exactly, many users blamed it on DMCA strikes on his VODs that still existed.

To combat the ban, fellow NRG Rocket League player, NRG jstn., tweeted out #FreeSquishy to garner attention for the abrupt ban. It appeared that the hashtag worked for SquishyMuffinz because in under a couple of hours, the ban was lifted on the streamer.

Once SquishyMuffinz found out, he thanked the community and said he would be deleting all clips and VODs in order to stop the DMCA ban from happening again.

There was no concrete reason why SquishyMuffinz was banned. It would appear that it was due to the DMCA crackdowns that are currently taking place on Twitch. If his channel remains untouched going forward, that would mean deleting the VODs and clips worked. This could be an outlier for a ban or it could be a sign of what's to come for streamers who don't comply.