The fine from the South Korean Telecommunications Committee (KCC) was made for Twitch to suspend VOD service. According to Yonhap news agency, KCC determines that Twitch's VOD service termination is a violation of the business law when 'weakening the benefits of users'.
In addition to the fine, KCC also requires Twitch to provide evidence to prove the decision to terminate their VOD service is necessary if the platform continues to operate in Korea in the future. In addition, KCC also sent a 15 million won sentence for Twitch for not applying the system to prevent the distribution of illegal films.
Before stopping VOD, Twitch made a decision to reduce the quality of video from 1080p to 720p in September 2022 to save money. According to the foundation, this measure is not enough to reduce costs.
Twitch has announced that it will stop working in Korea since February 27, 2024. Even, Twitch CEO – Dan Clancy explained that this platform has no clear way to compensate for high operating costs in the country.
It is unclear how Twitch's closing will affect the electronic sports industry and the community in Korea. Over the years, Korean League of Legends tournaments often use Twitch to broadcast live. Besides, Korea is also one of the largest electronic sports markets in the world, especially in League of Legends.
