Google in Damage Control after Controversial Streaming Tweet
Mike Sanders / 3 years ago
Google Stadia represents one of the most mainstream forms of physical video game streaming services. Even despite the fact that in terms of sales, the system isn’t doing very well at all. Following a Twitter post from Google Stadia Montreal Creative Director Alex Hutchinson, however, it seems that the company is under some damage control after he expressed some rather controversial opinions that I daresay many of you will find more than a little irksome!
Google in Streaming Tweet Damage Control
In the post, which you can check out below, Alex Hutchinson suggested that people who stream video games on various online platforms should pay the developer or publisher for a license to do so. A rather controversial opinion particularly given the streaming nature of the Google Stadia.
It seems, however, that Google isn’t entirely happy with this sentiment. Or, more accurately, they want to professionally distance themselves from it.
“The recent tweets by Alex Hutchinson, creative director at the Montreal Studio of Stadia Games and Entertainment, do not reflect those of Stadia, YouTube or Google.” – Google
The real truth is the streamers should be paying the developers and publishers of the games they stream. They should be buying a license like any real business and paying for the content they use.
— Alex Hutchinson (@BangBangClick) October 22, 2020
What Do We Think?
While we can’t profess to agree with Alex Hutchinson’s feelings about streamers paying to broadcast games, there is a part of us that understands the point he was trying to make. Unlike films, music, or TV, there is something of a grey area in terms of the intellectual property of broadcasting games. Particularly since, with digital purchases particularly, you never strictly speaking own the game, more so you simply own the right to play the game. Albeit, maybe that in itself is why there is something of a loophole. I mean, ‘buying’ the game under those terms may represent something of a license… I’m no legal expert, but I’m sure that argument could possibly be made.
ANYWAY, with that being said, we daresay that many of you who regularly stream on Twitch, YouTube, or Facebook may be sticking two metaphorical fingers up to Alex Hutchinson today!
What do you think? – Let us know in the comments!
