GGL deems Twitch community update as insufficient for German gambling 

Gluecksspiel (GGL), Germany’s unified gambling regulator, has warned Twitch that its streaming platform must comply with the advertising rules of the Fourth Interstate Gambling Treaty (GlüNeuRStv). 

The caution is a response to Twitch updating its ‘Community Guidelines’ this October to enforce a ban on “unsafe slots, roulette, and dice gambling sites”.

The updated guidelines stated that “starting October 18th we are further tightening our rules also to prohibit any streaming of listed sites that contain slots, roulette, and dice games and are unlicensed in the US or other jurisdictions that offer consumer protections like deposit limits, waiting periods, and age verification systems”.

 While GGL acknowledged that Twitch’s update was “a step in the right direction”, it noted that the US streaming platform’s new rules were insufficient as “in Germany, every form of advertisement or bringing attention to illegal gambling websites is forbidden”.

Twitch was reminded that under GlüNeuRStv regime rules only ‘whitelisted’ operators can advertise to German audiences – a rule that is enforced on domestic and international media owners.

 “Permissions from European or non-European, for example American, authorities would not be recognized in Germany,” it said. “The gambling providers permitted in Germany are listed on the official whitelist. This list is updated regularly.”

The GGL’s warning further stated that any streamer that promotes illegal/unlicensed gambling will face a criminal conviction 

Twitch must now further ensure that gambling content promoted on its platform complies with the GlüNeuRStv regime’s strict requirements on promoting gambling offers and games allowed to be advertised to the German public.

Twitch was recommended to clarify its advertising rules before 1 January 2023, the date that will see the GGL take on the full monitoring duties of advertising for German gambling.