YouTube will use AI technology to discover more or age limited videos

2024-03-01

According to foreign media The Verge, YouTube is launching more AI driven technologies to discover more videos that may require age restrictions, which means more viewers will be required to log in to their accounts before watching to verify their age.

Similar to how YouTube began using machine learning techniques in 2017 to better capture violent and platform specific content, and later discovered videos that included hate behavior, the same method will be used to automatically label videos deemed unsuitable for age by YouTube. Therefore, YouTube is expected to have more videos with age restrictions.

The company is preparing to make some errors on its labels, just like any introduction of artificial intelligence moderation technology. As part of the change, people who watch embedded YouTube videos on third-party websites will be redirected to YouTube to log in and verify their age.

One of the major challenges faced by creators in YouTube's partnership program (those who are able to monetize videos) is whether these restrictive measures will have an impact on their earning potential. The YouTube team does not believe so, as it expects that most of the videos that will receive automatic age limits may also violate the company's advertiser friendly guidelines. Basically, according to YouTube, these videos will already have limited or no advertisements.

This does not mean that errors will not occur, they will occur, as demonstrated by countless incidents of incorrect labeling and evidence collection in the past, as well as various forms of copyright strike disputes. But YouTube is strengthening its appeal team to handle the appeals received. Another concern for creators is that age limited videos will not appear on the homepage. Although age limited videos are unlikely to appear on the homepage, according to YouTube, age restrictions do not automatically prevent videos from appearing on the homepage.

Recently, YouTube is attempting to address the criticism from parent groups and publicity committees that the website is unsafe for children. The YouTube team often says that due to federal privacy protection, YouTube is not suitable for people under 13 years old to use, and the company points out that YouTube Kids is a so-called safer choice. However, this does not prevent young children from using the application at home or elsewhere. Some popular channels are built around creating content specifically for children. Now, YouTube's trust and security team will restrict videos during the review process. If it is deemed unsuitable for people under the age of 18 to watch, an age limit will be set.

"Due to our use of technology leading to more videos being age restricted, our policy team takes this opportunity to re-examine the boundaries of our age restricted content," wrote a new blog article on YouTube. "After consulting experts' opinions and comparing them with other content rating frameworks, we only need to make minor adjustments."

The YouTube post also pointed out that for people from EU countries, the new rules may require some additional steps. According to the upcoming EU Audiovisual Media Services Directive (AVMSD) and other regulations, some European users may be required to provide additional age proof. In fact, if the system is unable to verify someone over 18 years old, according to the post, they may be asked to "provide a valid ID or credit card to verify their age.". Thisa one-time process, and YouTube should delete the information after it is sent. YouTube stated that this process was established to comply with Google's privacy and security principles.

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