Twitch, the streaming service, has announced the introduction of new features that allow users to customize content settings in search results and sensitive content recommendation feed.
This includes the ability to blur thumbnails for sensitive broadcasts and filter content based on its rated tags. Both features, initially mentioned by Twitch’s administration earlier this January, are now fully functional and accessible to all users of the platform.
The new features give the platform’s users the ability to:
- Hide content that comes with certain Classification Tags (CTs);
- Streams with selected CTs will not be recommended to the user and will not appear when browsing categories or searching for content;
- Automatically block content tagged with “Sexual Themes”, “Drugs, Intoxication, or Excessive Use of Tobacco”, “Violence and Graphic Depictions of Violence”, and/or “Gambling” for viewers under the age of 18.
Concerning the blurring of thumbnails for broadcasts, it is, by default, enabled for content tagged as “Sexual Themes”. Users can switch off this feature in their “Content Preferences” settings.
When activated, thumbnails for broadcasts tagged “Sexual Themes” will automatically blur when browsing categories, recommendations, or searching for content.
Twitch emphasizes that content tagging allows viewers to make informed decisions about the content they want to watch. Repeated failures in the proper use of tags could result in an account being blocked, possibly for a significant period.
Twitch’s administration is hopeful that these changes will allow viewers to personalize their Twitch experience and simplify the process of choosing the communities they wish to be a part of.
