COPPA and YouTube

On videos and channels marked as “for kids,” Youtube will no longer collect data on viewers (cookies) and show them targeted ads. Instead, “contextualized ads,” based on the video’s content, will be played. These videos and channels will also lose a number of features. On “kids” videos, things like comments, info cards, and end screens will be disabled; channels will no longer have notification bells, community tabs, stories, and more.

The FTC’s own guidance adds another criterion: it notes that “the use of animated characters or child-oriented activities and incentives” is a factor in determining whether content is aimed at children. However, it goes on to say, “While many animated shows are directed to kids, the FTC recognizes there can be animated programming that appeals to everyone.” Even so, many animators who upload to Youtube are now anxious about how the settlement could affect them.

What if creators don’t comply?
The FTC has clarified that it could directly fine channel owners who abuse the system (up to $42,350 per mislabeled video). This means that creators, not Youtube, are responsible for the correct labeling of their videos. However, the FTC also states that, when determining the size of a fine, it will consider factors “including a company’s financial condition and the impact a penalty could have on its ability to stay in business.”

Youtube has also announced that it will use machine learning to identify unlabeled kids’ content. But it admits that such a system “is not perfect,” so creators of adult content could find their videos incorrectly defined as “for kids.”