Gorgc explained why he got banned during the TI15 stream: “They literally used me as an example”

Content maker Jean Gorgc Stefanovski spoke about the ban on Twitch received while watching The International 2026 in Dota 2. On the broadcast after the ban was lifted, he suggested that the reason for the punishment was the rebroadcast of the official stream of the tournament.

I'll tell this story from my side. DotaTV did not work on the first day of TI. That's why people were allowed to watch the main broadcast, right? I, like everyone else, watched it because DotaTV didn't work. The second day came and DotaTV started working. They told me: “Please watch via DotaTV.” I replied, “Okay,” and then turned on the camera. And they told me, “Please don’t use the camera.” And again I was like, “Okay.” But then DotaTV started crashing. And I thought, “[Damn], I’m going to miss the team fights on the stream,” so I put the stream on the screen for a few seconds while I solved the problem. I just showed the teamfight because we’ve been watching the game for 40 minutes and I didn’t want to miss those few minutes, you know? So I showed it for probably ten seconds, without sound and not even on the whole screen. I decided it was ok because DotaTV wasn't working. I was just trying to keep the broadcast going, you know? I was never told this directly, but I think that's why I got banned, which is pretty crazy. One would assume that when DotaTV is not working, you could show a couple of seconds of the broadcast so you don't miss anything, right? And Valve decided, "Screw it. We'll give him a strike for copyright infringement." So yeah, that's why I got banned - because of the strike for copyright infringement. This happened in the midst of the TI group stage. Honestly, these were probably the most important days for me in terms of streaming all year. It was a crazy moment for my broadcast. And I was banned. Of course I'm very upset about this. When I was banned, I just sat in front of the computer for almost two hours in complete bewilderment. I didn't do anything. I was like, “Okay, what the [hell] do I do now?”

Stefanovski noted that later the rule prohibiting community casters from watching the official stream on their broadcasts began to be applied in other regions.

[Question: “Why were Russian streamers allowed to rebroadcast the main broadcast?”] I don’t know. I heard that they have some kind of special agreement. But now I think Valve was just lying, because now they can’t watch the main broadcast either. Shortly after receiving the ban, I chatted with Russian streamer Nix. He asked "What happened?" I told him and he said, “Oh, they just wrote to me that if I watch the broadcast too, I’ll get banned.” That is, Valve banned me, and then changed the rules for Russians. They literally used me as an example, jeopardizing all my activities, even though I was not even the worst offender. If you think about it, it's just crazy. They just decided: “It’s you - go [to hell].” And then: “Okay, now this rule applies to everyone else.” So yes, I was set up badly. But ok, nothing can be done. Two days is normal. I will follow the rules. But I feel a little bad about it. Seems a little unfair. But it’s okay, let’s move on.

Gorgc was banned from Twitch on August 14th. The content maker noted that the reason for the blocking was a complaint from Valve. Stefanovski's access to broadcasting was returned two days later. This was his first ban on the platform.