Credit: S. Laiba Ali via Unsplash
YouTube, the platform preferred by Australia’s kid group, The Wiggles, is now included in the world’s first social media ban for children aged 16 and under.
Advertising industry insiders say the ban will see kids using YouTube without signing into an account or pushing them onto unregulated platforms, while crippling local businesses that are advertising responsibly.
Google’s high growth advertising supported video platform YouTube at first had an exemption from the ban but the government did an about face after warnings from its eSafety commissioner, Julie Inman Grant.
Last month, Grant cited YouTube’s “persuasive design” and “opaque algorithms” that keep young people scrolling as key reasons to revoke its exemption.
Google objects to the ban. YouTube advertising revenue increased 13% to $US9.8 billion in the June quarter, driven by direct response advertising, followed by brand.
YouTube has argued “it’s not social media” and frequently used an educational resource.
From December 10, digital platforms – including Facebook, Instagram, Snapchat, TikTok, X and now YouTube – face fines of up to $49.5 million for failing to prevent underage users from accessing their services.
Havas Play head Belinda Miller said the inclusion of YouTube in the under-16 social media restrictions signals that the landscape is tightening around youth-targeted advertising in Australia.
“While we support the intent to create safer online spaces for young people, this change will naturally challenge how advertisers responsibly reach under-16 audiences,” she told AdNews.
“Brands that traditionally target younger cohorts are likely to pivot toward contextual advertising, creator-led content that isn’t reliant on user-level targeting and environments where age-gating and compliance can be clearly demonstrated.
“It also places greater importance on platforms like YouTube Kids, family co-viewing strategies, and partnerships with creators… that can deliver reach without breaching these privacy boundaries. For agencies and brands alike, it’s about adapting – not retreating.”
Enigma chief media officer and partner Justin Ladmore said the impact on ad spend will be minimal.
“Responsible brands have already moved away from directly targeting kids and this new regulation will hopefully stop or at least slow those brands who are targeting children in unethical ways,” he said.
“Marketers should go back to the old school strategy of influencing the influencers like the parents. We have become lazy and it has affected our kids.”
Ladmore said there are still questions about whether the ban can be effectively enforced.
“The biggest challenge is the practicality of the regulation because users can access content without an account,” he said.
“I just spoke to my 16-year-old son, and he told me (with a big smile on his face) not to worry as he will happily monitor his little brother’s activity.”
Bench Media CEO Ori Gold said banning under‑16s from YouTube won’t crash ad budgets, but it will force advertisers targeting this cohort to get smarter.
“Some campaigns will need to shift strategy, and there may be a short‑term dip in spend on certain platforms as underage logged-in users are cut off. But the impact is more likely to be absorbed through reallocation than a reduction in total spend,” he said.
“Without logged-in targeting in the walled gardens, expect more spend to flow into contextual channels, gaming, curated creator partnerships and family co-viewing formats like BVOD. Platforms that offer age-verified or parent-managed environments, especially local media and streamers, stand to benefit.”
“Cheap video views from under-16s will no longer prop up performance metrics… but it will separate the thoughtful from the lazy.”
BCM managing director Phil McDonald said it is “utterly ridiculous” to suggest that YouTube is not social media.
“It really is time that Google and Meta understand that people are not an algorithm - they actually have a brain,” he said.
“What they need to do is to join the party and address the issue of the negative impacts that video sharing and social media can have on our children and young people.
“Less whinging and more helping would be a good start. Rather than treating people like they are idiots.”
Kinesso head of planning and investment Charlie Allatt said reduced viewership of any kind will mean more competition and could drive up costs.
“The vast majority of advertisers target adults, but there's still millions of kids watching content on YouTube,” he said.
“Poorly executed buys can cross over into buying ‘made-for-kids’ inventory easily, and the longtail nature of buying on YouTube can make that hard to spot, for buyers.
“Losing all those views would likely be a hit to Google’s bottom line.”
Vonnimedia managing director Veronica Cremen said banning YouTube is a “massive setback” for Australia’s future creatives.
“For many young people, YouTube is one of the only affordable ways to learn skills like scripting, editing and filmmaking, where you can build a community off the back of it,” she said.
“Private film schools are out of reach for most families, and this ban will leave Australian kids at a huge disadvantage compared to their peers in the US, Europe and Asia.
“It’s the equivalent of banning rugby or soccer for all kids under 16 because they could get injured, it would cripple the future of Australian sporting teams.”
Western Sydney University digital literacy and wellbeing researcher Joanne Orlando said government efforts to make the internet safer for children are positive – but warns the reality for parents is far more complex.
“There are many complexities in how parents actually manage this. They’re the ones who, day to day, will have to enforce the ban,” she said.
“Kids’ ‘how-to’ videos on things like homework help or swim coaching are well used… YouTube is free and not many families can afford their own swim coach and unfortunately all that is lost.”
Orlando believes including YouTube in the ban will result in reduced ad revenue.
“On top of this, the social media ban on the other platforms means the ad dollar will need to be directed to this age group in other ways,” she said.
“Young people will overall be gaining their content from other platforms such as gaming and messenger apps. Plus, I would expect a growth of brand new platforms in response to these bans.”
Hypetap managing director Bryce Coombe said the impact on advertising revenue goes beyond just fewer ad dollars.
“While direct targeting of under-16s will stop, a large portion of ad spend isn't targeted to this age demographic,” he said.
“Australian brands predominantly target older demographics with greater purchasing power.
“The reality will likely be that this regulation won’t lead to a reduction but rather a re-allocation of budgets towards more mature audiences, more brand-safe environments, and more alternative channels.”
Yango general manager, product and operations, Rob Nagy said YouTube’s inclusion is “not the end of the world”.
“I see this as a critical moment for us to be even more strategic and adaptable for our clients… the impact of this on advertising outside of YouTube Kids (which has even more limited targeting) is fairly minimal in terms of a purely audience-targeted play,” he said.
“This shifts the conversation significantly. We’ll likely see a move towards broader, contextual-level advertising rather than highly audience-targeted campaigns for advertisers looking to reach these audiences.
“The challenge, then, becomes measurement – how do we effectively attribute impact without that granular audience data? That's a puzzle we're already working to solve.”
King Kong founder Sabri Suby said blanket ban on YouTube is a sledgehammer approach to a scalpel problem.
“It puts Australian businesses in the crosshairs,” he said.
“All this ban will do is push kids onto unregulated platforms, while crippling local businesses that are advertising responsibly.
“Instead of pulling the plug, the smarter move is better moderation, tighter age gating and platform accountability, without sacrificing the digital economy or punishing businesses for something they don’t control.”
The Media Store head of digital Nick Hayes thinks the government is treating the symptoms and not the cause.
“The harms that social platforms can cause children are no doubt present in YouTube, but ‘social media’ isn’t what links them. Algorithms that learn to target kids with toxic, inaccurate content (and the finely tuned UX that make these platforms addictive) is the unifying factor across these platforms,” he said.
“By not holding platforms to account for how their algorithms take advantage of and influence children, the ban will end up over-policing some platforms while others that cause harm fly under the radar.
“For brands whose primary audience is younger kids, more dollars will be pushed into family or household targeting – think co-viewing across screens, gaming, emerging formats and audience analysis platforms to reach their audience in other channels.”
Edith Cowan University communication lecturer Catherine Archer warned the ban could stifle creativity among young people.
“We remember people like Justin Bieber and Troy Sivan started their life entertaining people on YouTube, so potentially those creative outlets won’t be there for younger people,” she said.
“You can still watch the history lesson in class or find a maths teacher online… and you’ll still be able to click on links that may be inappropriate. So it won’t stop kids accessing potentially inappropriate content, but they won’t be able to contribute.
Archer said the ban will have a “huge” impact on the advertising industry.
“I think one good thing coming out of this is that we’re actually having these discussions, and there’s a bit more of a spotlight on the platforms and their responsibilities,” she said.
“Now it is the place where young people go... If they can’t see content created by their peers, that’s going to make a big dent. They’ll probably just go somewhere else that’s not as well known.
“Kids can definitely still be targeted but they may not be attracted to it as much because there’s not those younger content creators on there.”
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