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UK ban proposals could bring YouTube Kids and Lego Play into scope
The UK Government is considering expanding its under-16 social media ban to cover services including YouTube Kids and Lego Play, despite earlier assurances that educational, shopping and music services would be exempt. The proposals could affect up to 150 platforms, with ministers seeking broad rules to prevent young people from bypassing the restrictions.
The working proposal focuses on recommendation systems and user-generated content, which could bring Spotify into scope because it recommends music and podcasts and hosts some user content. The ban is due to start in March; regulations are expected to receive cabinet sign-off this week and be laid before Parliament in December. A further set of rules next spring may cover marketplaces such as Vinted, eBay and Depop, prompting industry concerns about unclear boundaries and the role of messaging features.
In short
- The proposed ban could reach up to 150 platforms.
- YouTube Kids, Lego Play and Spotify may be affected.
- A separate spring proposal could include online marketplaces.
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The case for
Supporters of a broad ban argue that young people can encounter harmful content or addictive recommendation systems on services not usually labelled social media, so exemptions based on a platform’s main purpose may leave easy ways around the rules. Clear, wide coverage could make protections more consistent and harder to evade, especially where services host user posts or recommend content.
The case against
Critics argue that extending the ban to children’s, educational, music and shopping services risks restricting useful or age-appropriate access without clear evidence that each poses the same harms as social media. Unclear boundaries around recommendations, user content and messaging could burden services and families, and make it difficult to know which platforms must comply.
Explained simply
The UK Government is considering rules to limit under-16s’ access to social media. The debate centres on how to define a social media service, since many apps mix videos, recommendations, messaging and content posted by users.
Ministers are responsible for proposing the rules, which would need to be set out in regulations and scrutinised by Parliament. Online services such as YouTube Kids, Lego Play and Spotify could be affected if the rules cover recommendation systems or user-generated content.
The boundaries matter to families, young people and companies that run online services. Clear definitions would help establish which services must comply and how the restrictions apply to features such as messaging or shopping.
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Originally published by The Guardian as “UK social media ban expansion for under-16s could cover YouTube Kids”.