Kick blocked in Greece for unauthorized gambling services

Kick has been placed on the Hellenic Gaming Commission's blacklist of prohibited gambling websites

Kick, the emerging streaming platform aiming to rival Twitch, has encountered a setback as it has been banned in Greece due to its hosting of unauthorized gambling services. The ban was imposed by the Hellenic Gaming Commission, which has included Kick on its blacklist of prohibited gambling websites. 

Despite speculations about the platform being owned by the crypto casino and betting website Stake.com, Kick itself does not function as a gambling platform, although it does permit the streaming of gambling content.

Reports indicate that Greek users attempting to access Kick's main page are redirected to the Hellenic Gaming Commission's website, where they are informed that they are trying to visit a blacklisted site.

This was demonstrated in a video posted by n3lswn, showcasing the experience of a Greek user. The ban seems to be enforced by Greek internet service providers (ISPs), as the platform remains accessible when using a VPN with a Greek IP address.

Stake.com is also included in the Hellenic Gaming Commission's blacklist, with its domain being blocked in Greece. The country, along with the wider European Union, has stringent regulations surrounding online gambling, allowing only a limited number of compliant websites to legally operate.

In response to the ban, a spokesperson from Kick stated that they are aware of the issue and are actively working with Greek ISPs to address the problem. They emphasized that the ban may have resulted from a specific ISP blocking an individual channel, leading to the entire domain being mistakenly blocked.

Since its official launch in January 2023, Kick has quickly gained traction as a live-streaming platform by offering streamers an attractive revenue-sharing model.

Streamers have the opportunity to retain 95% of their subscription revenues and 100% of the tips they receive from viewers. This generous split has made Kick a compelling alternative for content creators looking to maximize their earnings. 

While Kick has recently made headlines with its highly lucrative contracts offered to top streamers such as xQc and Amouranth, it still has a long way to go to catch up to Twitch, which boasts significantly higher daily views. Twitch, however, has recently announced plans to introduce new labels for its channels, including a classification for gambling content, potentially signaling a relaxation of its anti-gambling stance, which was introduced in October 2022.

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Written by Silvia Pavlof

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