Australia will include YouTube in its world-first ban on social media for children under 16, Prime Minister Anthony Albanese announced Wednesday, overturning an earlier decision to exempt the video-sharing platform from the ban.
The announcement came after Australia’s online safety regulator called for the government to remove the exemption for YouTube, citing a survey that found YouTube was the platform most frequently identified by children as the place they had encountered harmful content.
“We want Australian parents and families to know that we’ve got your back. We know this is not the only solution, and there’s more to do, but it will make a difference,” Albanese said at a press conference in Canberra.
The laws set to come into effect in December will require social media companies to “take reasonable steps” to prevent children under 16 from holding accounts on platforms including YouTube, Facebook, X, Instagram, TikTok and Snapchat, or face fines of up to AU$49.5 million ($32 million).
YouTube had previously been exempted from the ban on the grounds it had educational uses.
In response to Albanese’s announcement, a spokesperson for the platform said that while “we share the government’s goal of addressing and reducing online harms,” YouTube is a video sharing platform, not social media, adding that it will consider its next steps regarding the government’s decision.
