France to take legal action against Kick over influencer’s livestream death: What is this platform?

French authorities have actually introduced an examination into Kick, the Australian live-streaming platform, after the stunning death of influencer Raphael Graven, much better understood online as Jean Pormanove.

Graven’s last live-stream, referred to as”10 days and nights of abuse” obstacle, has actually raised troubling concerns about the platform’s function in enabling such material to stay online. Reports recommend he had actually long undergone violence and embarrassment in videos transmitted to his fans.

According to the GuardianFrance is preparing to take legal action against Kick for supposed carelessness, a federal government minister has actually stated. If the business is discovered in infraction of guidelines, it might deal with fines of as much as $49 million, a major blow to the second-largest live-streaming platform worldwide.

What is Kick?

Kick is a live-streaming platform co-founded by Australian crypto gambling establishment billionaire Edward Craven, where users can relay live videos while audiences communicate in genuine time through remarks and contributions.

The platform, released in late 2022 with financing from the group behind the betting website Stake.com, placed itself as an opposition to Amazon-owned Twitch by using banners less constraints and much lower platform charges.

Unlike its competitors, Kick enables developers to keep 95 percent of their profits from advertisements and audience contributions, and it likewise pays leading banners to go live more regularly.

While this design assisted the website grow quickly, it has actually likewise offered Kick a track record for being home to betting streams, violent material, and sexually suggestive product, raising issues over what kind of audience it was drawing in.

Why is the Kick under examination now?

Kick has actually come under extreme spotlight following the death of French influencer Jean Pormanove, aka Raphaël Graven.

Previously this month, Graven passed away after what authorities referred to as a “10 days and nights of abuse” livestream difficulty with fellow developers, Naruto and Safine, on the platform. French media reported that he had actually currently withstood months of violence, embarrassment, and severe obstacles throughout his broadcasts.

According to BFMTV, the experience included “severe” physical violence, sleep deprivation, and even the intake of poisonous compounds. The 46-year-old was discovered unresponsive by a co-streamer after audiences raised the alarm. The stream had actually been running for almost 280 hours.

ALERTE INFO|Le streameur Raphaël Graven, alias Jean Pormanove, est mort dans kid sommeil alors qu’il était en direct. pic.twitter.com/3n3u6Ex1SD

— Impact (@ImpactMediaFR) August 18, 2025

Preliminary reports recommended nasty play, however an autopsy later on verified Graven had actually not passed away due to injury or third-party intervention. In a BBC report, authorities exposed that Graven had actually formerly informed investigators he was not a victim of violence, firmly insisting the stunts were staged to “develop a buzz” and make money.

The case has actually triggered nationwide outrage, with France’s Minister for Digital Affairs and AI, Clara Chappaz, calling Graven’s death an “outright scary”. She condemned both the abuse he suffered and Kick’s failure to action in. She pledged to end what she referred to as the “digital Wild West”.

On Tuesday, Paris district attorney Laure Beccuau verified an official examination into whether Kick purposefully relayed “videos of intentional attacks on individual stability.”

In reaction, Kick revealed it had actually prohibited all co-streamers associated with the experience, vowed cooperation with authorities, and stated it was examining its French material. “Our top priority is to safeguard developers and make sure a more secure environment on Kick,” the platform stated on X.

Australia opens an examination too

While France might have restricted authority over Kick, which is headquartered in Australia, the case has actually likewise stood out of Australia’s eSafety Commissioner. The workplace validated that an active examination is underway and even alerted of high charges, according to The Sydney Morning Herald

“This is an awful case where somebody has actually lost their life, and highlights how the development of more severe material, in this case including real violence, can have disastrous, real-world repercussions,” a representative for the commissioner stated.

Under Australian law, platforms should take duty for protecting users from hazardous or criminal product and are anticipated to impose their own regards to service.

A representative informed The Guardian“eSafety will utilize the complete variety of our enforcement powers as proper where there is non-compliance, which can consist of looking for charges of approximately AUD $49.5 million.” They included, “Platforms like Kick require to be doing more to implement their own regards to usage and reduce damaging material and conduct in streams to secure all users of the service.”

Check out: Why has Australia included YouTube to social media restriction for teenagers?

What’s next for Kick?

Where does Kick go from here? The fact is, it’s not really clear. The platform has actually developed much of its brand name on being more unwinded about content guidelines compared to its primary competitor, Twitch.

Mark R Johnson, a Lecturer in Digital Cultures at the University of Sydney, keeps in mind that Kick is not likely to tighten its small amounts policies unless pressed by regulators. As he described in The Conversationthe website presently has just standard safeguards, such as pop-ups asking audiences to verify they are over 18 when getting in betting streams.

Federal government pressure might require some modifications. Still, imposing policies is challenging, Johnson notes, as nations frequently threaten to obstruct access to specific sites, however these steps are simple to bypass with a virtual personal network (VPN).

Eventually, the fallout might depend upon just how much public and political attention this case draws. Often, awful occurrences such as mass shootings or online violence stimulate larger cultural and legal shifts. Whether this disaster will be a turning point for Kick and comparable platforms, however, is still unsure.

With input from firms