YouTube’s major privacy upheaval on kids videos starts today

The US FTC, which fined Google over COPPA, has given broad directives about what it considers child-directed video, including clips with popular animations and kids play with toys. Individual video creators will face fines for violating COPPA going forward, which has sparked panic. — AFP

Starting on Jan 6, YouTube will overhaul its systems to comply with a landmark privacy ruling, a move that could dent revenue for the Google video giant and thousands of its creators.

Alphabet Inc’s Google settled with federal regulators in September for violating laws on collecting data from minors, and YouTube agreed to a series of changes. Videos designed as "made for kids” would be stripped of targeted ads, which fetch higher prices, and other valuable features, such as user comments and live chats.