Offline TV members Scarra, QuarterJade, and Sydeon discuss Kick and whether the 'Hide Slots' feature is enough to combat gambling
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On the latest episode of the Offline TV podcast, Scarra, Sydeon, and QuarterJade briefly discussed the streaming platform Kick. They noted how the Twitch rival had recently implemented an option that allows viewers to block off certain categories of content, such as gambling streams, which fall under the Slots category, and hot tub streams.
About an hour into the episode, Offline TV founder Scarra brought up the topic of Kick. The platform has been a hot topic in the streaming community lately because of the number of big streamers who have joined it after signing huge deals.
Sydeon noted that she had visited the website and found the new 'Hide Slots' feature quite interesting:
"I took a glance and it just looks like a streaming platform. One of the new things that they introduced which I found interesting was, they give you an option to filter out all hot tub and all gambling-related streams on the platform. Because that is like the big anti-Kick argument is like, all of the money comes from Stake which is gambling... So they're like you don't have to see any of this."
Timestamp 1:05:07
However, Scarra pointed out that the option will not be turned on by default:
"Platforms that do that, and don't do that automatically, like a lot of people don't automatically do that."
QuarterJade responded by saying that it should be blocked off by default:
"If anything, it should start as the basis, and then you should turn it on."
Scarra then explained that blocking off content by default would hinder their revenue and brought up the fact that one can hide categories on Twitch too, but he has never seen anyone close to him use the feature:
"But they would never do that, because that's their income. For instance, and this is something I didn't know Twitch had, you can block entire categories on Twitch. There is a button there when you click on a category that says block."
The trio then discussed whether they themselves would ever consider joining Kick.
"The money comes from dubious sources": Offline TV founder Scarra gives his opinion on people joining Kick
Scarra is a Twitch veteran and co-founder of the iconic Offline TV group, which has become one of the pillars of the streaming community on the platform. While talking to Sydeo and QuarterJade, he weighed the pros and cons of joining platforms and taking sponsorships that might be in conflict with his morals and ethics.
Kick and its connection to Stake has generated a lot of controversy since its formation last year. More recently, the platform was accused of promoting gambling streams through its recommended lists.
However, in his argument, Scarra noted that while the money coming from "dubious sources" will be a for him, he is not in a position to judge people who do take it. He explained:
"Kick is something that I feel, from a random standpoint, I should not talk about or rather not talk about. Because it might benefit me later. But um, the money comes from dubious sources, you know? And it's always like, well, I can't blame anyone who takes that... I feel like we get into weird things where people get mad at people for taking $100 million dollars."
This is a reference to how former Offline TV member Pokimane and some other vocal critics called out xQc for signing a $100 million deal with Kick.
Scarra added that while he has moral reservations about taking money that has come from unethical sources, such a big figure would make even him think twice.
After discussing people who have apparently sold out in their careers, Sydeo mentioned that she would have to think quite hard if she received a Kick offer. She added that she could not really leave her Twitch community without probable cause.
Sydeo said:
"I think I would have to think really hard about a Kick offer. Ultimately I don't think I would want to do it because I wouldn't want to leave the community on Twitch. But, yeah, if someone put life-changing money..."
Sydeon's argument about not being able to leave her community on Twitch is quite similar to popular streamer Cloakzy's recent revelation about why he did not join Mixer for a seven-million-dollar deal.
