The Online Performers Group is seeing a mass exit of partners including major streamers like MrGrimmmz, Anthony Kongphan, and Twitch council member Cohh Carnage.
Livestream management organization Online Performers Group (OPG) is seeing many of its major names back out and drop affiliation with the group amid sexual misconduct allegations aimed towards its CEO, Omeed Dariani. Following the exit of dozens of content creators, the CEO himself has officially stepped down in the wake of the allegations as well.
The matter came to light when, in the midst of many sexual harassment victims and survivors coming forth about experiences in the gaming industry, Overwatch Community Development Lead Molly Fender Ayala collected her experiences with the OPG CEO in a June 21 Twitter post. Ayala described a 2014 situation in which Dariani, a senior employee at Sony Interactive Entertainment at the time, allegedly coerced her into sleeping with him at the threat of being blacklisted in the gaming industry. Ayala also hinted at knowledge of another incident in 2015 in which Dariani subjected another individual to an “almost identical experience.”
My experience with Omeed Dariani.
Read: https://t.co/rU8ZoGLCiF
— Molly Fender Ayala (@ItsMeMollyO) June 21, 2020
In the wake of Ayala’s allegations, multiple major streamers have broken affiliation with OPG. The group had clients such as musical personality T-Pain and popular speedmetal group Dragonforce, but the client list on the OPG website has since been taken down at the time of this writing. Even so, it is alleged that around 50 of OPG’s previously listed 73 clients have terminated contracts with the company, according to Dexerto. Among them are former H1N1 and PUBG Invitationals champion and streamer MrGrimmmz, popular twitch star Anthony Kongphan, and Twitch Safety Council member Ben ‘Cohh Carnage’ Cassell, to name a few.
For his part, though Omeed Dariani initially expressed sentiment to “be more vigilant and more sensitive” in response to accusations of harassment, he has since officially stepped down from his position at the OPG group.
I am no longer the CEO of OPG.
OPG is a special company. It has created opportunity where none existed before.
The talented women and men who work there pour their hearts into it daily. Give them a chance.
Please don’t destroy it because you’re angry at me.
— Omeed (@Omeed) June 21, 2020
OPG’s issues of sexual misconduct among its higher ups follows the recent official shutdown of Mixer, where management among Microsoft’s livestreaming platform recently faced allegations of major racism. As the gaming industry continues to see victims and survivors of abuse step forth and make their stories heard in this trying time, here’s hoping that, with support and effort, the industry can become a safer and better place.
