After receiving a community strike banning him from livestreaming content for three months , prominent YouTuber Grimm Green said :
“ For the first time ever , I ’ m genuinely worried . This isn ’ t an exaggeration . Damn the man , save the empire .”
While the hysteria around JUUL may have sparked the initial wave of strikes , many fear that vaperelated content is at risk of being banned from the site altogether . Some suspect that a strike on one of TiaVapes ’ videos was due to its title alluding to offering discounts to viewers . Others on both sides of the Atlantic have had their channels deleted , sometimes with years-worth of work expunged from the internet .
One explanation for the removal of some videos is that they contain references to CBD . Despite being legal in most countries and US states , it has been suggested that bots scanning videos for forbidden content are picking up on references to the cannabisderived compound and flagging videos for supposed drug-related content . In other cases , videos are being marked as spam which , in the case of Rob of ukvapester . co . uk , led to the deleting of his account and a permanent ban . On Twitter , Rob said :
“ No warnings … No strikes … Permanent account ban and delete . Two years of my life gone … I don ’ t understand .”
Uncertainty around what exactly is and is not permissible has forced the community to consider migrating to other social platforms . Vimeo has proven to be the most popular so far . But the community is a lot smaller , restricting potential for channels to make money . Some of the more prominent channel-owners rely entirely upon YouTube to support themselves and their families .
Content-creators are now also seriously looking to new platforms that cater exclusively to vaperelated content .
“ FOR THE FIRST TIME EVER , I ’ M GENUINELY WORRIED . THIS ISN ’ T AN EXAGGERATION ”
GRIMM GREEN
Vape Tube is a relatively new platform which has seen an influx of channels open since fears of an allout YouTube vape ban began to circulate . The likes of The Devil Vaper and SirVapingAlot have already begun to upload content to the site .
Instagram receives a lot of traffic from within the vaping community , with the site seemingly happy to allow the promotion of vape-related content . However , the site is owned by Facebook , it ’ s possible that users there may soon face tighter regulations . One potential alternative for vaping Instagrammers is Vaffle , which has become commonly referred to as the ‘ vaping Instagram ’ since its launch earlier this year . Vaffle provides vapers with a platform to share images , build social connections and learn about vaping . The app includes a DIY e-liquid tool and an Ohm ’ s Law calculator , among other things .
In their own shake-up on advertising regulations , Reddit sub ECR announced a ban on all e-cigaretterelated sales back in March . Shortly after the announcement was made , users began making proposals to create and migrate to an off-site forum allowing users to sell and advertise products and link to recommended vape shops .
A similar plan has already been finalised by users of the CBD subreddit site theCBD . place provides visitors with advice on CBD and a database of vetted companies .
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