YouTube Introduce New Rules Restricting Kids From Streaming

YouTube Restricts Kids Streaming

Over the last year or so, live streaming via YouTube has proven to be a very popular (and convenient) means of getting a video quickly out there on the internet. While it hasn’t been perfect, it seems that this will form a major part of the platform for at least the foreseeable future.

Following a new blog post, however, the video streaming service is looking to place certain restrictions on live-streaming. Specifically, that anyone under the age of 13 will no longer be able to stream unless an adult is ‘accompanying’ the broadcast.

New Rules!

The new guidelines are rather thorough, but put simply the channel is looking to steer away from live streamed content by minors unless an adult is clearly a participant in it. This does, however, also extend to the disabling of comments and restricting their appearance as ‘recommended’ videos.

We updated enforcement of our live streaming policy to specifically disallow younger minors from live streaming unless they are clearly accompanied by an adult. Channels not in compliance with this policy may lose their ability to live stream. We also launched new classifiers (machine learning tools that help us identify specific types of content) on our live products to find and remove more of this content. – YouTube

What Do We Think?

The short version is, this is probably a good idea. While some might see it as a little mean spirited, the internet can be a dangerous place for the naive. Particularly children who have yet to learn life’s lesson that sometimes people are terrible to you for no good reason.

It may, however, turn into a positive experience if kids have to do this with their parents. That being said though, we’re not entirely sure how YouTube plans to police this…

What do you think? Is this a good idea? – Let us know in the comments!