YouTube executives are considering moving kids content entirely to the separate YouTube Kids app and removing the auto-play feature to protect children from inappropriate content.
YouTube has come under a lot of fire the past year for its handling of kid content on its platform. So, it appears the platform is going to make a major change to its policy to avoid any more incidents and controversies involving children getting tricked into watching inappropriate, crude videos on the platform. According to the Wall Street Journal’s sources, YouTube is considering moving all of it child-oriented videos to its dedicated Kids app. They are also reportedly considering disabling the autoplay feature.
Will YouTube actually go through with it?
As of now, it’s not really certain if YouTube will decide to go ahead and implement these changes. A YouTube spokesperson said that Google “consider[s] lots of ideas,” but some “remain just that — ideas.”
We could imagine that YouTube would take a hit to its ad revenue if it does implement these plans. However, in theory, it should keep kids from crude content, which resulted in many companies pulling their ad investments from YouTube.
All things considered though, it seems likely YouTube will do something. The company lost major investors during the incidents. Though it was only temporary, YouTube and Google probably don’t want to risk losing those investors again.
YouTube may not be the one to decide
It is also a possibility that YouTube may not have a choice in the matter. According to WSJ’s insiders, Google chief Sundar Pichai has been “personally involved” in YouTube’s recent problems
Pichai could decide YouTube is not doing enough to protect kids. So, we just have to wait and see what happens. If these ideas are implemented, it will for sure be a huge change to YouTube.
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