Tech companies including Snapchat, TikTok, Facebook parent company Meta Platforms, and Instagram are urging the Australian government to reconsider its decision to remove YouTube from its historic law that forbids children under 16 from using social media.
Competitors contend that YouTube exposes kids to the same hazards as other platforms, such as algorithmic content suggestions, social interaction capabilities, and potentially hazardous content, according to news agency Reuters.
Social media companies must prohibit minors from logging in under the law, which was approved in November, or risk heavy fines of up to A$49.5 million ($31 million). Because YouTube is considered an educational medium and may be used in family accounts under parental supervision, it was spared from this rule.
What the social media companies have to say
A young individual who has a YouTube account is also exposed to hazardous information, according to Meta.
“YouTube’s exemption is at odds with the purported reasons for the law and we call on the government to ensure equal application of the law across all social media services,” Meta stated in a blog post.
TikTok urged uniformity across all platforms, expressing fears that excluding YouTube would result in a “illogical, anticompetitive, and short-sighted” rule.
Snapchat agreed, highlighting the need of applying exclusions in a fair and unbiased manner.
“There must be a fair and impartial application of exclusions and all services should be held to the same standard,” Snap Inc said.
YouTube has asserted that it has expanded its definition of harmful content identified by its automated algorithms and that its moderation efforts are becoming more rigorous.
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