YouTube ‘creators’ fret over impact of new child protection rules. YouTube is changing its rules for videos directed at children, a move that could impact many content creators on the network

YouTube is changing its rules for videos directed at children, a move that could impact many content creators on the network (AFP Photo/Lionel BONAVENTURE)

San Francisco (AFP) – Samuel Rader quit his job three years ago to work full time on his YouTube channel, “Sam and Nia,” featuring videos of his family life.

The channel created by the Texas-based couple — with videos of their Hawaii vacation, setting up their backyard pool and other content about “Christian family life” — has become one of the stars of the Google-owned video service with some 2.5 million subscribers.

But the future is now uncertain for “Sam and Nia” and other YouTube “creators” as a result of a settlement with US regulators that will make it harder to get ad revenues from videos and channels directed at children.

“I went into a minor panic attack when I heard,” said Rader, whose channel has taken in a reported $2 million from ads placed along the videos.

“I thought we would have to find a new source of revenues.”

YouTube earlier this month agreed to pay a fine of $170 million and change how it handles collected data from children under a settlement with the US Federal Trade Commission.

YouTube will treat data from anyone watching children’s content on YouTube as coming from a child. It will also stop serving personalized ads on this content entirely, and bar features such as comments and notifications.

The new rules, set to go into effect in four months, have stoked fears in the YouTube community of creators and “vloggers” like the Raders, who live off the advertising revenue.

– Shock, grief, fear –

“There’s a lot of shock, grief and fear. For many creators, this is their only source of income,” said Melissa Hunter of the Family Video Network, a consultancy which also operates a group of channels on YouTube.

“They are people making content in their houses, not huge companies; they’re small homemade businesses.”

Many questions remain as to how YouTube will define children’s content — intended for kids up to age 12 — which will be subject to the new rules.

Source: https://news.yahoo.com/youtube-creators-fret-over-impact-child-protection-rules-013244690.html