Australia bans YouTube accounts for children under 16 in reversal of previous stance
YouTube was listed as an exemption in November last year when the Parliament passed world-first laws that will ban Australian children younger than 16 from platforms including Facebook, Instagram, Snapchat, TikTok and X.
Communications Minister Anika Wells released rules Wednesday that decide which online services are defined as 'age-restricted social media platforms' and which avoid the age limit.
The age restrictions take effect Dec. 10 and platforms will face fines of up to 50 million Australian dollars ($33 million) for 'failing to take responsible steps' to exclude underage account holders, a government statement said. The steps are not defined.
Wells defended applying the restrictions to YouTube and said the government would not be intimidated by threats of legal action from the platform's U.S. owner, Alphabet Inc.
'The evidence cannot be ignored that four out of 10 Australian kids report that their most recent harm was on YouTube,' Wells told reporters, referring to government research. 'We will not be intimidated by legal threats when this is a genuine fight for the wellbeing of Australian kids.'
Children will be able to access YouTube but will not be allowed to have their own YouTube accounts.
YouTube said the government's decision 'reverses a clear, public commitment to exclude YouTube from this ban.'
'We share the government's goal of addressing and reducing online harms. Our position remains clear: YouTube is a video sharing platform with a library of free, high-quality content, increasingly viewed on TV screens. It's not social media,' a YouTube statement said, noting it will consider next steps and engage with the government.
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