Regulation could disrupt the booming “kidfluencer” business

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Child social­-media influencers are changing the shape of kids’ entertainment in America—and making a lot of money in the process. But critics and regulators are concerned

Ryan, now aged 11, and “Like Nastya”, a nine-year-old with 106m subscribers, lead the charge on YouTube; they earned $27m and $28m in 2021, respectively, according to. Most social-media sites require users to be over 13, but parents or guardians can create and run accounts on behalf of their children. Kid creators speak to other kids in their videos: they play make-believe with friends and family, show off new toys and give tutorials on dancing and hand-washing.

But concerns from regulators threaten to rein in kids’ earning potential. Watchdogs have accused creators of not clearly signposting sponsored content in toy videos. And in 2019 America’s Federal Trade Commission clamped down on targeted advertisements shown on YouTube videos directed at kids, accusing the social-media platform of illegally collecting data from underage users. Channels must now label content for children.

What happens when a child influencer grows up? “Ryan always comes first to us,” say his parents in a statement to. “If he doesn’t feel like filming, we do not force him to.” The Kaji family have pivoted into educational content and cartoons, employing 30 people to help run Ryan’s channel and several others under their own production company.

 

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