Kick co-founder Ed Craven announces removal of “unnecessary exposure to gambling-related content” and changes to tackle view-botting

Ever since Kick’s launch in late 2022, it has experienced an astounding surge in growth. Nevertheless, there have been allegations of view botting that have garnered criticism towards the platform. Given this situation, Ed Craven, co-owner of Kick, has announced their plans to implement updates to safeguard users from any potential manipulation of viewership.

Ed took to his Twitter to announce the upcoming update, stating their intentions to “maintain a fair landscape for creators.”He wrote:

“We’re rolling out some extra view count protection on @KickStreaming. This should help combat view count manipulation. It will also help solve some issues surrounding follow/chat bots. Rest assured the community is still growing & we’re staying committed to ensuring we maintain a fair landscape for creators.”

He stated that the aim was to provide added protection:

“The main problem being solved here is in relation to “Tabbing”& the abuse that came with that. Some further protections have also been included.”

We're rolling out some extra view count protection on @KickStreaming.

This should help combat view count manipulation. It will also help solve some issues surrounding follow/chat bots.

Rest assured the community is still growing & we're staying committed to ensuring we…

— Eddie (@StakeEddie) June 30, 2023

Has Kick been view botting? Ed Craven assures protection in the new update

Kick has faced a tarnished reputation due to the alleged view botting. This was, in fact, confirmed by Ed Craven himself during a recent interview conducted by Jake Lucky (@JakeSucky).

For instance, Davin Nash, the former CEO of Counter Logic Gaming (CLG) and a Twitch streamer, made allegations against Adin Ross, claiming he engaged in view-botting. he said:

“Adin Ross… and come on the website that they will trickle it to other broadcasts. Even if it’s not the majority, you know, 10% of 30,000 (viewers) subtracted by two, from the view-bots. And you get, like, divided by two, excuse me. And you still get a decent number of people.”

Devin Nash Confirming Big Creators Like Adin Ross Viewbot on Kick by u/ChefBabylon in LivestreamFail

Nevertheless, Ed Craven disclosed that efforts are being made to address the issue raised regarding view-botting. Additionally, he announced that the website would be taking steps to remove unnecessary gambling advertisements. He wrote:

“Alongside this update, we’ve also removed some unnecessary exposure to gambling-related content throughout our recommended formula’s.”

What did the community say?

Ed Craven’s tweet garnered multiple responses from the streaming community. Here are some of the notable ones:

Can we also work on getting “clips” from old vods? Just in case you ur chat misses it?

— @Booeyz (@BooeyzZ) June 30, 2023

W thank you man

— JaredFPS (@JaredFPS) June 30, 2023

Can’t wait to see all the plus 500 viewer streamers have 50

— Sponge (@iiSpongeAlot) June 30, 2023

Amazing progress as usual. 💪 Keep up the great work.

— PRIZMEL (@PRIZMEL_) June 30, 2023

also can we have more rotation of small recommended streamers. and if we get on the featured page can our dashboard notify us? “you are being featured”

— energizedGG (@energized_GG) June 30, 2023

My reaction to this absolutely massive W pic.twitter.com/BrHuHyTIxN

— GameWiz (@SbjGameWiz) June 30, 2023

this is an INCREDIBLE update. thank you for always keeping the public informed, Eddie!

the ability to toggle off gambling stream content is also an appreciated factor. I hear a lot of misinformation from folks, saying that Kick is just a way to funnel people into gambling. and I…

— Haley (@UghHaley) June 30, 2023

Awesome.

I was wondering why I’d see 450 viewers in a stream and 4 people were talking.

Just wanted to make sure I wasn’t nuts. 😅

— AmericanDad (@AmericanDadLive) June 30, 2023

The Stake-owned platform has recently been a hot topic in the online world, particularly after signing the popular streamer Felix “xQc”to a two-year deal worth a whopping $100 million. That set a new world record in the industry.