Twitch, the popular live-streaming platform owned by Amazon, has sparked controversy among its community with a new policy set to take effect on April 19, 2025. The company announced on Wednesday that it will impose a 100-hour storage cap on Highlights and Uploads, automatically deleting older content until users’ archives fall below this limit. The move, aimed at cutting storage costs, has drawn sharp criticism from streamers who see it as a shortsighted decision from a subsidiary of one of the world’s leading cloud storage providers.
In a blog post, Twitch explained the rationale behind the change, stating that “Highlights haven’t been very effective in driving discovery or engagement,” making the cost of storing vast archives of such content unsustainable. Highlights are curated snippets that streamers edit from their live broadcast recordings (VODs) using Twitch’s Highlighter tool, intended to showcase their best moments. The cap will also apply to Uploads—content created with third-party tools and uploaded to the platform. However, other on-demand features like Clips and VODs, the latter of which already face automatic deletion after a set period, will remain unaffected by the new restriction.
The decision has ignited a firestorm of backlash, particularly given Twitch’s parent company, Amazon, which dominates the cloud storage market through Amazon Web Services (AWS). Streamers and fans have taken to social media to voice their frustration, pointing out the irony of a company with virtually limitless storage capacity choosing to purge user content. “Twitch is owned by Amazon, yet they’re acting like they can’t afford a few extra terabytes for creators who built their platform,” tweeted one prominent streamer, echoing a sentiment shared widely across the community.
For many streamers, Highlights serve as a digital portfolio, preserving career-defining moments and allowing them to build a legacy on the platform. The 100-hour cap—equivalent to just over four days of continuous footage—forces creators to either meticulously curate their archives or lose cherished content forever. Twitch has encouraged users to download and back up their Highlights and Uploads before the April 19 deadline, but this solution has been met with skepticism due to the time and effort required, especially for those with extensive libraries.
The move comes amid broader cost-cutting efforts by Twitch, which has faced challenges balancing profitability with its commitment to supporting creators. Last year, the platform adjusted its revenue-sharing model, drawing similar ire from streamers reliant on its ecosystem. Critics argue that this latest policy further alienates the content creators who drive Twitch’s success, potentially pushing them toward competitors like YouTube Gaming or Kick.
As the April 19 deadline looms, the streaming community braces for a significant shift. Whether Twitch will heed the outcry and adjust its plans remains uncertain, but for now, streamers are left scrambling to preserve their digital legacies—or risk seeing them vanish into the cloud.
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