Kick appears to be quietly testing in-stream ads on the platform

Kick is reportedly testing ads in the middle of streams, sparking backlash from streamers and viewers. Information on whether creators would get a cut of the ad revenue is presently unclear.

User reports surfaced on X, where posts warned that Kick would have ads sooner than people thought. Some creators complained about unskippable ads playing on their channels with no option to disable them.

During a livestream, a Kick creator (Trainswrecktv) reacted to the promotional ads. The platform kept running test ads, interrupting his stream, and people were frustrated about it. He also suggested testing out ads on lower-viewership channels instead, or creating their own streams momentarily. The ads allegedly kept surfacing every 10 minutes, further fuelling annoyance.

Reactions to the ad testing in general were mixed-to-negative. Some called the short ad bursts tolerable, while others called them jarring and said that they undermine Kick’s promise of a lighter ad experience on the platform.

The CEO of Kick previously confirmed that the platform would get ads eventually. However, testing seems to have begun now. No release date was announced at the time, and the rollout still appears limited.

Some people pointed out that Kick wasn’t very transparent with ads in the first place, which explains the reason for the backlash. It was originally advertised as a “no ads” platform, but that’s not sustainable. Ads are inevitable for such companies to stay afloat, and they should’ve informed users directly instead of silently updating documentation and adding tests.

Speaking of documentation, Kick’s Privacy Policy was updated on May 19, covering personalized ads and providing opt-out toggles in user settings (opting out doesn’t eliminate all ads).

On one hand, Kick needs to make money to remain sustainable. However, better transparency about advertising and a direct announcement of the rollout would massively help the current situation.

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