YouTube COPPA issue

[LittlePIGGY]

I create content on YouTube - simple tutorial videos on using RPG Maker MV. Standard RMMV assets and assets from videos-looks Chibi-cute. Whether such content is required to be marked "for children". Or the program has age restrictions and is not intended for child users. Under 13 years old?

Example video in RUSSIAN. I voice the actions done. There is no advertising or addressing children in the video.


What is the official position of the company, as to whether the content with lessons on working with software products of the company - content for children?

Thank you​

 

[Poryg]

COPPA covers whether your content is aimed SPECIFICALLY at children. An example of a video aimed specifically at children is this:

Nursery rhymes, stupid "fairy tale" or superhero videos "for kids" that plague youtube nowadays or whatever.
Since your tutorials are aimed at the general audience, then they are not aimed specifically at children, therefore by default you are not producing videos for children.

 

[LittlePIGGY]

I thought so too. Unfortunately THIS is NOT THE case in reality. The wording "can your content be interesting to children" is extremely vague. I believe that despite the Chibi graphics program is not for children under the age of 13 years.

Therefore I want to receive the official answer. so for example Photoshop - in accordance with the General rules of use of products Adobe has a limit of 13 and older.

 

[Poryg]

Yeah, in my language it was not explained so vaguely. It asked me whether my content was made with children as a primary audience, or not... So I turned it off accordingly.

 

[NinjaKittyProductions]

There has been some talk about content creators using curse words for the first 30 seconds of their videos and even having to state "This video is not suitable for persons under the age of 13" at the start just so their video will not be targeted, taken down, or demonetized. As soon as I find the page, I'll link it here.

 

[bgillisp]

A few things:

COPPA has been around since 1998. This is nothing new.

Secondly, I don't think the company cannot give an official position as youtube's algorithm may mess up regardless of what happens. I could be wrong on this, but that's AFAIK.

 

[MushroomCake28]

Poryg is correct. If children is not your primary target audience, then you are fine. Youtube's wording might be vague, but that's how it always was and always will be. Truth is that even youtube can't fully control what their algorithm flags, since it would be impossible for them to watch all videos on youtube to review them. The algorithm is flawed and will mess up.

Also, do you expect youtube to post here on the forum?

 

[Kokoro Hane]

Legal wording is always the most vague thing you'll ever come across. But I agree with most that you should be fine, as you are making tutorials. Most people that make games with RPG Maker are probably older than 13, and I am sure a good chunk of devs are adults. And in my opinion, tutorials wouldn't be the most appealing to children anyway--in their vague wording, 'appeals to children' is used when it could be kids content, but honestly, a tutorial would probably be quite boring and unappealing to a child. Especially since, despite RPG maker's "easy enough for a child" slogan (mostly a symbolic term for how easy it is), it is extremely tedious and boring technical work, whether you are using script or even the built in functions. I doubt your tutorials are aimed toward children with child-geared language, so you should be safe as far as I am concerned. I am not legal expert, so these are just my 2 cents.

 

[MushroomCake28]

Legal wording is always the most vague thing you'll ever come across.

Sorry, I will have to dispute that as a law student lol. This particular case is poorly worded (probably on purpose), and some part of the law is worded generally and vaguely as to allow more "liberal" interpretation and more flexibility. But there are also many parts that are crystal clear and don't leave any place to interpretation.

 

[ImaginaryVillain]

<Note: All of this is offered merely as a share of information and not legal advice. I am not a lawyer, what you're reading here is just for entertainment purposes.>

I dislike politics... However it's worth clearing up at least some COPPA stuff. This is not like the other Youtube monetization issues. It's not Youtube that's enforcing COPPA, it's the Federal Trade Commision https://www.ftc.gov which is the US Government's consumer watchdog.

Youtube lost a lawsuit brought against them by the FTC for targeting underage children (younger than 13 in the US), they had to pay $170 million, and the FTC is now enforcing COPPA on it. https://www.ftc.gov/enforcement/cases-proceedings/172-3083/google-llc-youtube-llc Due to the FTC enforcing COPPA and not Youtube. Youtube can give no clear opinion what isn't or isn't legal under it, because if they do they can be fined in place of the content creator for essentially telling someone it's okay to break the law. If you wish to read the actual COPPA document you can find it at https://www.ftc.gov/enforcement/rules/rulemaking-regulatory-reform-proceedings/childrens-online-privacy-protection-rule

As you are in Russia, I have some good news for you. The main thing that is worrying Youtuber's about COPPA is the up to $42,000 per video fee for violating it. However Youtube is not levying the fine, the FTC is. Since you aren't a US citizen our laws don't exactly apply to you. Keep in mind this doesn't stop Youtube for demonetizing you for other reasons. You simply need not worry about a fine from the FTC (unless Russian laws allow another country to fine Russian citizens).

If you have no wish to delve into US legal docs, here are a couple of Youtube videos about COPPA that are more easily understood from popular Youtubers...

And an actual Lawyer talking for 40+ minutes about it...

 

[Kokoro Hane]

Sorry, I will have to dispute that as a law student lol. This particular case is poorly worded (probably on purpose), and some part of the law is worded generally and vaguely as to allow more "liberal" interpretation and more flexibility. But there are also many parts that are crystal clear and don't leave any place to interpretation.

That sort of mixed bag of "vague on purpose" and "crystal clear" in place is exactly what I mean by legal terms being the most vague things ever, lol. Perhaps I should have worded that better myself, but in most cases, a lot of legal speak can be difficult to decipher which is why many people go off the wall crazy when new things are implemented (or in this case, simply enforcing something that already existed--and not making it any easier to understand). I just feel it would clear so much stress if they would be clearer so not everyone goes into a panic, and even say "there is wiggle room in some cases". I know legal speak varies; some are fairly crystal clear to everyone, and other times--it is not. On YouTube, a very popular platform, it's not very fair to use vague speech or offer little help. Not everyone can afford lawyers.

 

[MushroomCake28]

@Kokoro Hane Being vague and being hard to understand are two completely different things. The complexity of legal clauses and laws may be an issue for non-legal people, but in a society where everything gets more and more complex (mainly due to technology and science) it is unavoidable (I remember the class on that subject in my first year of law school. Boring, quite honestly lol).

Fair or not, I suspect that isn't Youtube's problem. Having everything being vague, this gives Youtube a big advantage when they are getting sued since they can easily dispute the interpretation of a clause. Ethical? Perhaps not, but it's a strategic business move.

 

[Kokoro Hane]

@MushroomCake28 Ah yes, I see where you are coming from. When it's vague, that does open the possible for a lot of technical loopholes, so I see why YT would do that.

 

[LittlePIGGY]

In our case, COPPA does not protect CHILDREN from content, but children in comments, from pedophiles who want to chat with them. And if with photoshop can be referred, that program itself for people older 13 years, then age restrictions for RPG Maker mv I have not found.

unless Russian laws allow another country to fine Russian citizens

In Russia, the protection of children from everything connected with the Internet is a sacred cow. But we mainly protect children from information that can harm their moral or mental development, or push to rash actions (to suicide for example).
For me, these policy changes look like attempts to remove responsibility from the site and PARENTS for who their children communicate with on the Internet. And along the way to replenish the budget.

 

[Poryg]

This could be an interesting video to see. It's made by a lawyer and examines COPPA.

 

[LittlePIGGY]

YouTube's answer

 

[ImaginaryVillain]

Is she a robot? The way her mouth and eyes move has me thinking Youtube's special effects department needs work. Nowhere near approaching defeating the uncanny valley.

 

[Poryg]

She's reading a script in front of her, obviously.

 

[ImaginaryVillain]

Well yeah I was joking, the other robots would never be okay with me revealing the truth to the humans. She is completely normal, we are all normal, right fellow humans?

 

[Aesica]

Is she a robot?

Sometimes, the lizard people running these big tech companies make subtle mistakes when they assemble their human facsimiles.