YouTube has raised the minimum age
requirements for livestreaming by three years. As of July 22, creators under the age of 16 will not be allowed to livestream on the platform unless accompanied by an adult.
The change was
highlighted in YouTube's Help support page.
“In addition, live streams featuring 13- to-15-year-olds who are not visibly accompanied by an adult may have their live chat disabled and the
account may temporarily lose access to live chat or other features,” the company stated with regard to the news.
“In the future we plan to take down these live streams and the
account may temporarily lose its ability to live stream,” YouTube added.
Creators impacted by the new rule will also be emailed if their livestreams are removed from the platform. Those
between the ages of 13 and 15 who have built followings on YouTube can circumvent the change by making an adult an editor, manager or owner of their personal channel.
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However,
according to YouTube, adults co-creating with anyone under the age of 16 must maintain a real presence on the channel, needing to “visibly present” on livestreams alongside the underage
creator.
YouTube has yet to explain why it has altered the age requirements, but the decision is likely tied to the attempted protection of younger users against exploitation of various
kinds.
The news also comes at a time when Australian officials are set to enforce a 16-year-old access limit for all social media platforms. YouTube itself is at the center of a debate in the
region as to whether it should be included in this upcoming age restriction.
Regardless, the decision will likely anger a large sect of content creators on YouTube, forcing younger creators to
pivot their strategies for building or maintaining an audience through livestreamed content.