https://www.bbc.co.uk/newsround/articles/c1d13lxz5x5o
So France is banning Social Media usage for the under 15s from 2027 – but the twist here is that the law specifies that EVERYONE needs to age verify. Now I have asked around and this appears to be the sticking point for a lot of companies. Pretty much all of the people I spoke to said that it will mean at the very least a one-off payment for EVERYONE to access the main social media platforms in France or maybe, just maybe some platforms stopping “free” accounts. The issue with the stopping of “free” accounts is how many people are already on a “free” tier, so at this moment in time, it is looking like a one-off payment will win the day. However, here in the UK, it is looking increasingly likely that EVERYONE will get a similar experience with the law for social media and under 16s not being 100% confirmed yet, but it does appear that like France, a requirement for all to do age verification appear almost a certainty as the method used in Australia has proven to not really make much of a difference!
Just to add as well that games in the UK are starting to get age verification as they do not adhere with the online safety act, with pretty much every new release being 16+. The new FIFA for example which has traditionally sold million of copies to under 16s will no longer be legal, with players having to age verify as well…. interesting times ahead as all these things, to be brutal, are unlikely to make any difference whatsoever as they are almost impossible to enforce!