Topic: Coppa

Google faces a class-action lawsuit for tracking children's online behavior without parental consent and reaches a $20 million settlement with the state of Indiana over deceptive location tracking. Despite users opting out of "Location History," the company was found to still track their movements, leading to accusations of intrusive and dishonest practices.

YouTube has introduced new requirements for creators to mark their content as "made for kids" or "not made for kids" following a $170 million FTC settlement over COPPA violations. The platform is shifting the legal burden of compliance onto individual creators, who must now navigate complex definitions of child-appealing content. Failure to comply could result in fines or the loss of monetization features.

Videos marked as "made for kids" on YouTube will lose key features starting in January, including comments, personalized advertising, and notification bells. The hosts review the FTC criteria for child-directed content, which includes the use of animated characters, toys, and simple songs. They argue that these changes will significantly decrease revenue for many creators and are part of a broader effort to "cull the herd" of non-brand-friendly content.