Twitch's new Drop Ins feature enables spontaneous collaborations, sparks controversy

Twitch has introduced a new feature called Drop Ins to facilitate spontaneous collaborations among streamers. This tool allows streamers to "knock" on each other’s live channels, sending a private notification that can be accepted to start a joint stream. According to Twitch CEO Dan Clancy, Drop Ins aims to simplify planning for shorter, impromptu interactions, making it easier for streamers to collaborate without extensive pre-planning.

The feature supports multiple participants, although Twitch has not specified a limit on the number of streamers that can join a single Drop In session. Streamers have some control over who can knock on their streams through permission settings, which include options like "All Streamers, Affiliates and Partners, Partners only, People you Follow, or your Favorites list." However, Drop Ins can only be paused during individual streams and cannot be permanently disabled, which has led to some backlash.

The absence of an opt-out option has frustrated many streamers, raising concerns about potential risks despite the control over who can initiate a Drop In. Clancy, however, stressed that Drop Ins are meant to boost Twitch's improvisational and spontaneous collaborations.