Submission Best Practices

With a large variety of Extensions being submitted, adoption of an Extension can be difficult for broadcasters due to the differing setups of each Extension. This document outlines best practices for submitting your Extensions for review.

Quicker reviews and faster adoption

When creating an Extension, keep in mind the flow broadcasters will follow the first time they use it. Following is a list of ways that you can simplify your configuration to increase adoption and speed up the review time of your Extension:

• Complete a quality assurance pass on your Extension. The more you do to ensure that the setup and usage of your Extension is a smooth experience, the quicker the reviewer can get through the review and help you release your Extension. 
  • Make sure the configuration page can be saved successfully and the Extension can be activated.
  • Once activated check that the Extension loads when activated on a channel.
  • Complete some functionality flows and make sure they don’t cause the user to become stuck at a certain page, or crash the Extension.
  • Consider asking a friend or colleague that is unfamiliar with the Extension to run through the experience to see if they understand the purpose of the Extension and can navigate the flow.
• If you require a specific game environment, or have a strict broadcaster whitelist, make sure that the review channel provided in your submission is set up with the required tools to review the Extension from the viewer’s perspective. If you aren’t able to keep a review channel live 24/7, leave a note in the review steps with the times that you can have your channel live. Don’t forget to include your time zone.

Extensions and offsite links

If a linkout directly enhances the experience of an Extension’s functionality or compliments content or data found in your Extension, it can be a great option. However, in order to pass policy review, there are a few things that you should not include in your linkouts:

• A landing page that has a call to action.
  A call to action is referring to buttons or text that encourages users to do something such as: sign up, download, or register. 
• A linkout to a social media website.
• A link to a site that is a competitor of Twitch.
• An advertising or sponsorship related page, if you are not already accepted into the Advertising in Extensions Beta.
• A page whose content is unrelated to the Extension’s functionality.

We believe that if you can bring in more functionality and information through the Extension UI itself, you can create a more seamless viewer experience. This also ends up being a better outcome for streamers who are trying to maintain viewer numbers and channel engagement.

How to write a great description

A great Extension description is simple and straight to the point. However, there are a few key things it’s important include in your Extension description. Broadcasters need to know why they should install your Extension and what to expect when using your Extension.

• The foundation of your description should be a quick explanation of the core functionality it provides and the purpose your Extension serves. 
• Focus on why a broadcaster should be excited to add this Extension to their list of favorite Extensions. 
• If there is any functionality that may not be in the actual Extension yet, or may have been removed since the description was written, make sure that your description is updated. 
• If your Extension has chat interaction functionality enabled and implemented, you will need to make sure that you clearly define in your Extension how it will be interacting with chat.
• If your Extension does not have any chat interaction functionality implemented, even if it is enabled, disable the “Has Chat” checkbox so the broadcaster isn’t alerted to chat functionality that doesn’t really exist.
• If your Extension has Bits functionality, you are not required to explain how the Bits exchange will work within your Extension. However, we recommend that you indicate somewhere that Bits are used so that the broadcaster is aware. If you do plan on mentioning Bits within your description, or any other part of your Extension, be sure that you are following the Bits in Extensions policies, Bits Acceptable Use policies, and the Bits in Extension Best Practices.

Here is an example of a great Extension description to use for a reference:

Configuration clarity

If your Extension requires configuration in order to activate it, putting in the extra effort to make this step user-friendly can help to increase adoption of your Extension. The configuration will be the first interaction that a broadcaster has with your Extension, and you want to make sure it makes a good impression! If the setup is confusing, or takes a long time to complete, it can be frustrating for a broadcaster looking for more of a plug and play solution. For game-matched Extensions, do not assume that there are steps or terminology that everyone who plays that game will know. Simplicity is key.

Ways that you can make configuration intuitive include:

• Keep as much of the configuration experience within the configuration page as possible. The less the broadcaster has to download, or register for accounts on a website, the easier it is.
• Use tabs on the configuration page to organize and filter different setup steps or customizations (i.e. setup tab, customization tab, information tab).
• Provide example text for any fields that need to be filled out by the broadcaster, such as required URLs or account credentials.
• Provide context for each option or requirement within the configuration page.
• Use an indicator to signify configuration was successful or unsuccessful. If a broadcaster needs to update something on the configuration page and a save is required to complete configuration, or if no configuration changes are needed, make this clear to the broadcaster.
• Notify the broadcaster if the live configuration is needed in addition to the regular configuration or if it can be useful for future updates.

Branding and emotes

Everyone wants to make sure that they are getting credit for the hard work they do, and Twitch is no exception. It is best to steer clear of using Twitch-branded content, such as the Twitch Glitch, Twitch Logo, or Twitch’s global Emotes in your Extension. If you have original images or emotes, we would be happy to see those included in an Extension to make viewer engagement more personal and exciting. However, if you are looking to use Twitch global Emotes, you will have to be accepted into the Twitch Extension Emotes Beta Program. Beta program requests can be submitted here.

For more information about what content specifically is not allowed within your Extension, review our policies page.

Commerce in Extensions

Monetary transactions through an Extension are only available for Extensions that have been accepted in the Commerce Beta Program. If you wish to implement a flow into your Extension which utilizes commerce, the beta program is open to requests. The form to join can be found here.

Before you join the commerce beta, we recommend reading the Commerce in Extensions policies.

Bits in Extensions

Bits are a fantastic way to help monetize your Extension while also giving broadcasters a way to provide a premium experience. However, there are some things that you will need to watch out for in order to pass review. First, we recommend you familiarize yourself with the Bits in Extensions and the Bits Acceptable Use policies. Once you have done that, read through the tips we have listed for you to help get your Extension through the review process without hitting any speed-bumps:

• Make it clear what the Bits are being used for, and how they will be used within the Extension by providing context within your Extension description.
• Terminology that is typically approved when referencing Bits: get, win, use, exchange, amount, give, earn.
• Do not use the following terminology when referencing Bits: cost, spend, donate, support, insert, sell, price, buy, purchase, cheering, betting.

It is a good idea to look through your Extension one last time before submitting for review to ensure that all references to Bits adhere to the policies. Following the policies increases your chance of having your Bits-enabled Extension approved.

Moderation API

Extensions that enable users to generate their own content creates exciting new ways for broadcasters to interact with their community. For these Extensions, we strongly recommend implementing the following features to provide a safer experience for broadcasters and engaged viewers. To help assist with implementing these safety parameters, Twitch offers our new Moderation API.

• Authentication - Ask the user to grant authentication permissions before being able to submit any content through the Extension
• Attribution -  Any content, submitted by a viewer through your extension, that will be shown to the broadcaster or other viewers on the channel should have the Twitch username of the submitter clearly displayed. This is so that the moderators can take action if necessary.
• Chat Ban Support - Any chat bans or timeouts for a viewer on the broadcaster’s channel should be honored by the extension. Any banned or suspended viewer should not be permitted to submit content that will be shown to the broadcaster or other viewers on the channel.
• Banned User Content Removal - If a user is banned, all of their content that can be seen by other users and has been submitted through the Extension should be removed. If the user is timed out the content they submitted through the Extension does not need to be removed.
• Enforcement Filtering - All text content submitted through the Extension must also pass through the enforcement endpoint which will determine if the submitted content meets the channel’s AutoMod requirements.
• Retroactive Manual Removal - Moderators should be able to remove any content that has been submitted through the Extension.
• Proactive Review - If your Extension allows content submitted by a viewer to be shown to the broadcaster or other viewers on the channel, it should provide an option for the broadcaster and/or their moderators to approve or deny the content submission before it is seen by other viewers.
• Content History - All user-generated content being submitted through the Extension should be posted to chat. For information on the chat API click here.

Requesting user permissions

Requesting users to share their ID and grant permissions to your Extension might be necessary for users to use all or some of your Extension’s functionality. Keep in mind that user privacy is a big deal and some users may be hesitant to grant permissions to something that they are unfamiliar with.

In order for users to understand why they are being asked for permissions within your Extension, we recommend that you only request the permissions you need at the time that you need them. This way users should have a better idea of what their ID is needed for and might feel more comfortable sharing their ID.