New Australia Rule: 16 years of age is required for a YouTube account in Australia. In Australia, children under the age of 16 will not be able to create an account on YouTube from 10 December. However, they will be able to use YouTube they will be able to watch videos on YouTube. Australia’s Communications Minister Anneka Wells gave this information on Wednesday.
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New Australia Rule: Accounts Banned for Under 16s
In November last year, Australia passed a bill in Parliament to ban social media for children under the age of 16. This included platforms like Facebook, Instagram, Snapchat, TikTok and X.
YouTube was then exempted from this law. Australia is the first country in the world to do so.
The law makes no exemptions for parental consent or pre-existing accounts. Platforms have a year from the time the law is passed to work out how to implement the ban.
There is no Ban on Gaming and Messaging Apps
It will be the responsibility of social media platforms to ensure that children of this age are not able to create an account on the platform. If this is not done, the platforms can be fined up to 50 million Australian dollars, i.e. about Rs 282.34 crore.
However, platform users will not have to upload documents like a passport and a driving license to prove their age. Online gaming, messaging, education and health apps are excluded from this ban. These have been considered less harmful for children.
New Australia Rule: YouTube Statement
YouTube said- We share the government’s goal of reducing and preventing online harm. Our stand is clear that YouTube is a video-sharing platform. It has a collection of free, high-quality content. It is also being watched on TV. This is not social media. We will consider our next steps and talk to the government.
Worldwide Social Media Timing
According to research firm ‘RedSeer’, Indian users spend an average of 7.3 hours every day on their smartphones. Most of this time is spent on social media. Whereas the average screen time of American users is 7.1 hours, and that of Chinese users is 5.3 hours.
Indian users also use social media apps the most. In the US and UK, an average person has 7 social media accounts, while an Indian is present on at least 11 social media platforms.
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Australia becomes the first country in the world to ban social media for all children under the age of 16
Should we do this in America? pic.twitter.com/CpoOt4IDIp
Petition to Ban Children’s Use of Social Media in India Rejected
On April 4, the Supreme Court refused to hear a petition seeking a legal ban on the use of social media by children below 13 years of age.
The bench of Justice BR Gavai and Justice Augustine George Masih had said- This is a policy matter. You ask the Parliament to make a law. This is beyond our scope.
Jay Chavda He is the Founder and Writer of businesspulsecare.com. He is an I.T Engineer, Freelancer, Businessman. He posts Business, Stock/Share Market, Finance Related News and updates on the website. 🔗