Work or play? The rise of online ‘kidfluencers’ raises complex legal and ethical questions

Videos of children unboxing and playing with toys have become a hallmark of online marketing, making stars out of children as young as two years old.

For example, 12-year-old influencer Ryan Kaji earns US$30 million a year on YouTube, where he leads one of the most popular children’s channels. His empire was built on unpacking toys.

Influencers (children or adults) with more than 1 million followers can earn more than $20,000 per sponsored post, while those with less than 100,000 followers on social media platforms can still earn $4,000 per sponsored post. You could potentially earn as much as $1.

But the rise of kidfluencers around the world is raising questions about the blurred lines between play and work, independence and control, privacy, profit and online success.

Our study examines these questions. By analyzing existing research to clearly identify the challenges faced by those who open children’s toys, future researchers and governments can best support children who spend part of their lives online. I can guide you like this.

YouTube as a career goal

A 2023 global survey of children aged 8 to 12 found they were three times more likely to want to be a YouTuber (29%) than an astronaut (11%). Ta.

Advertisers are also paying attention. Social media platforms Facebook, Instagram, Snapchat, TikTok, X (formerly Twitter), and YouTube collectively generated nearly $11 billion in ad revenue from U.S.-based users under the age of 18 in 2022.

Toy unboxings are particularly popular, generating huge revenues and a worldwide audience. These types of videos include children opening boxes of toys, playing with them, and reviewing them.

Unboxing videos became popular in the 2010s, when content creators were seen unboxing products such as tech gadgets and fashion items. Toy unboxing is currently one of the most profitable genres on YouTube.

Work, play, or something in between

At first glance, unboxing videos seem to follow a simple entertainer-viewer relationship. Kidfluencers emotionally engage with young viewers, encouraging them to create their own toy wish lists.

But behind the fun lies a complex world that young viewers (and sometimes older viewers) don’t understand.

These children are hired by companies and managed by their parents to promote toys and other products as a form of work. This has raised concerns about child exploitation, privacy risks, and unethical labor practices.

However, current child labor laws in countries such as New Zealand do not consider child influencers to be a type of “child worker.” And it’s difficult to do so.

Kidfluencers may appear to be playing seriously with sponsored toys, but their content is governed by contracts with advertisers and expectations set by parents. Therefore, it cannot be completely called “play”.

At the same time, calling these acts purely “labor” ignores the real excitement kids feel when creating sponsored content.

In 2020, the French government deemed kidfluencers to be in a “gray zone”, meaning they spend a significant amount of time producing videos or earn significant income from them, even though they are not officially working there. .

protect children

Another complication is that although some social media platforms require users to be at least 13 years old, some kidfluencers are young children whose parents create and use their own accounts. This includes managing and creating and posting online content for children.

Parents play a big role in managing their children’s online presence, but it’s the kids who take the lead in toy sales, creating a tension between parental control and children’s independence.

And behind that there is a money issue. Children’s participation and success is driven by the wants and needs of advertisers. This begs the question of how much say children actually have in the creation of content.

Privacy and online safety are two important issues facing the kidfluencer industry. The more content children’s toy unboxers post online, the more popular they become and the more money they make. But at the same time, popularity brings very real risks.

Young female unboxers, and female kidfluencers in general, are being targeted by online criminals. To stay safe, some kidfluencers use fake names and don’t share their location. However, these strategies are not perfect.

Current (and proposed) policies do little to balance protecting child stars with helping them succeed in sponsored content.

But in recent years, France and U.S. states have enacted laws to protect the incomes of kidfluencers.

All governments should follow suit, recognizing the challenges of the kidfluencer industry and developing policies that support and protect the children involved.

This article is republished from The Conversation under a Creative Commons license. Read the original article.