To protect its younger viewers, YouTube will now set videos created by creators aged 13 to 17 to private. This means the videos will only be viewable by people who the creator has manually selected – they won’t be popping up in people’s feeds.
However, the setting isn’t permanent. Creators can switch their videos to the public at any time. Additionally, YouTube will continuously remind the user about their video’s viewability status, so they’ll know if it’s on private.
YouTube is also implementing other restrictions on minors’ accounts
YouTube will also turn on ‘take a break’ and ‘bedtime’ reminders for those between the ages of 13 and 17. The autoplay function will be off automatically as well. That being said, you can disable these reminders and can turn autoplay on by accessing YouTube’s settings.
In addition to these automatic restrictions to minors’ accounts, YouTube is committing to removing “overly commercial content.” According to YouTube, this includes content focusing on product packaging or content that encourages children to spend money.
Also, YouTube on its main platform has updated the type of disclosures it displays with sponsored content for kid viewers. It also explains how paid product placement works in this video:
The continued struggle to make the platform more friendly for children
In the past few years, YouTube and other platforms have struggled to be safe places for children in accordance with COPPA law. But many are making changes. Instagram just recently restricted the privacy settings on accounts owned by people under the age of 18.
YouTube seems to be following suit. Both platforms are giving parents more control over their children’s accounts. Now, parents won’t have to worry about who is watching the videos their children are uploading. However, the new system is flexible enough to allow younger creators to make their videos public if they want to.