The Streamlabs controversy kicked off in November 2021. They were charged with allegations of flagrant plagiarism, and unethical business practices from fellow streaming tool developers. They were also charged by Twitch streamers, like Imane ‘Pokimane’ Anys, for using their photos for promotional content, without their consent.
Following this cascade of events, they even dropped OBS from their name.
On December 24, 2021, OBS and Streamlabs reached an agreement to “commit to long-term collaboration.”
In this article, we will take a look at the history of Streamlabs, analyze the allegations of Streamlabs controversy in detail, and understand what this all means for a streamer.
What is Streamlabs controversy?
On November 17, Streamlabs’ deck of cards started falling as Streamlabs vs Lightstream flagged off. Lightstream alleged plagiarism on Streamlabs with the launch of Streamlabs Studio.
The sequence of events was such that after Lightstream, even OBS, Elgato, and other streaming tool developers followed suit in exposing Streamlabs’ malpractices.
This led to outrage by the amazing streaming community, that lined up in defense of the other players. Streamers like Pokimane also talked about how Streamlabs was using her pictures for promotion, without seeking her permission. Many streamers vowed to never use Streamlabs again for their needs.
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The history of Streamlabs
Streamlabs is a California-based software company founded in 2014. It has over the years created various software but is mainly known for its broadcasting software. It lets users have the ability to record and live stream their computer screen on social media.
Streamlabs interestingly started as “TwitchAlerts”, a service that allows real-time notifications for your stream viewers. In addition, it was a backend for giving donations. They had to rebrand due to having no affiliation with Twitch.
Streamlabs have since then grown so much that in 2019 they were bought by Logitech for $89 Million in cash and $20 Million in Logitech stock. Also called SLOBS, this software took a center stage for being more user-friendly for beginners.
Streamlabs controversy – a timeline
How the controversy started: Streamlabs vs Lightstream
The start of this controversy was triggered by their new product, Streamlabs Studio. The prime objective of this software was to provide tools for console gamers to stream their games straight from the console without requiring the involvement of PCs. Now the release of this app itself did not make their users outraged.
The whole cascade of events started when the CEO of another broadcasting company, Lightstream aimed at console gamers came out on Twitter against Streamlabs. The tweet showed how blatantly Streamlabs had copied Lightstream’s home page.
This is just a small snippet of the picture showing how similar both pages were, at many places Streamlabs did not even bother to change the wording of the sentences. Even the reviews showed were copied almost word to word!
In my opinion, both Streamlabs vs Lightstream versions seem to be fake reviews, however, that is still no excuse for plagiarism.
Streamlabs’ response did not satisfy many. They basically saying that the page was a production error that was never meant to be in the finalized webpage and was merely a placeholder text.
This response just added fuel to the fire, making people more furious. According to the community, this did not look like a genuine mistake and the reply was presented in a very casual way.
This backlash turned out to be Streamlabs’ biggest nightmare. Other companies who were till now silent about it also came out saying how Streamlabs had blatantly copied them, basically opening pandora’s box of plagiarism and dishonesty.
One of the most powerful companies that came out against Streamlabs in this controversy was OBS.
Streamlabs vs OBS controversy
Streamlabs was formerly known as StreamlabsOBS but decided to drop the word OBS from the title. This happened because OBS came to the fore exposing they hadn’t given permission to Streamlabs to use the word OBS in their name.
Comparing Streamlabs vs OBS, unlike Streamlabs which is a paid software, OBS is an open-source software meaning anyone can use their code and republish it for free. Streamlabs was built on the same code.
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The problem was that Streamlabs used OBS in their title. Many people thought that Streamlabs and OBS had a connection or an affiliation with each other which was not the case at all. This fact came as a surprise to a lot of people including big streamers who were using it for years!
The worst part is that Streamlabs paid Google so that whenever someone searches OBS, Streamlabs comes up first. Combined with the fact that OBS themselves had asked Streamlabs to drop OBS from their title, and instead of removing it Streamlabs had gone ahead and trademarked the word StreamlabsOBS – just added fuel to the fire.
Streamlabs vs Elgato controversy
As if the damage done by Streamlabs vs Lightstream and OBS vs Streamlabs weren’t enough, Streamlabs vs Elgato came to the fore. This just showed how Streamlabs didn’t leave anyone from this mess.
Streamlabs vs Elgato started in 2017 when Elgato released their product called Stream Deck, a physical device that is a staple in almost every big streamer’s setup. Fast forward to 2020 Streamlabs releases an app that does the same thing. Streamlabs however cleverly named it “DECK”. But it still goes to show how Streamlabs was basically testing the patience of their fellow streaming tool developers, who they continued ripping off.
Streamlabs vs other streaming tools controversy
There are many other streaming tool developers which have outed Streamlabs since the controversy started.
This expose was really needed. But, at the same time, it damaged the image of Streamlabs in a very big way. Streamlabs was so careless that according to a Twitter user and designer Shawn P, Streamlabs was thinking about how they can trick people into accidentally signing up to Streamlabs.
How Streamlabs responded to these allegations
After all of this backlash and hellfire, Streamlabs finally responded saying they will be removing OBS from their name. They also informed that their code is publicly available – a lesser-known fact even in the streaming community!
Streamlabs controversy: what is happening now?
The Streamlabs vs OBS incident made headway on December 25, 2021, as OBS and Streamlabs announced they’re now planning to work together for the benefit of the streaming community.
However, Streamlabs is still facing heat, since they’ve not responded to any of the other allegations. This whole resolution incident seems like a patch job. Streamers, of course, are not happy with this ending!
Streamlabs controversy: streamers reaction
The community still remains outraged to a large extent. Many famous streamers have publicly said they’re leaving Streamlabs for other alternatives, never to come back again.
HasanAbi
HasanAbi, a Twitch streamer with over 1.6 Million followers, tweeted saying he will never use Streamlabs again if they don’t resolve the matter quickly.
Pokimane
Pokimane, another Twitch streamer who boasts over 8.4 Million followers, said that she will ask Streamlabs to take her face off their platform and change her donation service if they do not act accordingly.
Jacksepticeye
Jacksepticeye, a YouTube giant having more than 25 Million subscribers and also a Twitch streamer, said that he had no idea that OBS and Streamlabs were not together.
In closing: what it all means for a streamer?
While Streamlabs continues to weave a web to recover from this controversy, it’s best to follow an ethical path as a streamer.
If you are a streamer, go for alternatives to Streamlabs that are original ideas. Some are even created by small developers and will give them a much-needed boost. What’s more? Your community will respect you even more for it. And at the end of the day, that’s what streamers live for!
TL;DR: Below is a snapshot of the Streamlabs controversy.
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