Kick platform claims France 'takes advantage' of user's death on livestream

Australian streaming platform Kick accused the French government on Thursday (28) of taking advantage of a man's death live on air, after a minister promised to take legal action.

Kick is in the spotlight in France after a 46-year-old Frenchman died on August 18 during a live broadcast on his channel, in which he was seen being apparently mistreated by two colleagues.

Digital Affairs Minister Clara Chappaz said Tuesday that France would sue the platform for "negligence," accusing Kick of violating a 2004 law regulating online content.

Forensic doctors considered that the death of Raphael Graven, known online as “Jean Pormanove”, “was not of traumatic origin and was not related to third-party intervention”.

The platform said in a statement that it is disappointed “to learn that the media was informed of the minister’s actions before Kick, which suggests that this is not about the safety of creators, the safety of customers or the well-being of the industry, but rather a politicized narrative that preys on a tragic personal loss.”

Kick highlighted that, upon learning of the streamer's death, it immediately "removed the content that depicted his passing" and suspended all related accounts pending investigations.

In a separate announcement on Tuesday, Paris prosecutors indicated they had opened an investigation into the platform.