US Senate passes bills that restrict social media usage for minors

The news: The US Senate on Tuesday passed two landmark pieces of legislation—the Kids Online Safety Act (KOSA) and the Children and Teens Online Privacy Protection Act (COPPA)—with bipartisan support.

• The move could force social media companies and other digital platforms to drastically change how young consumers access their services.
• The bill now moves to the House, which just began a six-week recess and will return September 9. Speaker of the House Mike Johnson has not set a date to vote on the bill.

The change list: The two pieces of legislation establish a “duty of care” that platforms must maintain in product design and operation to protect minors from a list of social media harms including mental health disorders; addictive behaviors; bullying and harassment; and sexual harassment.

• Platforms will be required to give minors the ability to easily block users and limit who can reach out to them and must provide parents with the ability to supervise their children’s activity.
• Features that “increase, sustain, or extend use” of platforms like autoplay, rewards for time spent, notifications, and more must be limited.
• Platforms that “facilitate advertising aimed at [minors]” must clearly label the brand behind the ad and what/how personal data was used to determine the ad delivery.

If passed, the bill would give regulators like the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) and Federal Trade Commission (FTC) one year to publish a report on feasible age verification methods that platforms would have to implement.

What’s at stake: Social media firms make enormous revenues from underage users. A December study from Harvard University found that social media companies brought in $11 billion in advertising revenue from minors in 2023, a reflection of the ad industry’s demand for young consumers’ attention.

• Social media platforms fiercely compete for the attention of young users. TikTok and Pinterest have strong user growth and time spent among coveted age groups like Gen Z and Gen Alpha. Reductions to time spent and algorithmic recommendations could affect their ability to attract ad spending.
• In its report, Harvard said its findings highlighted a need for greater transparency and intervention from health authorities and regulators. Those regulators agree: concerns about social media addiction have led to regulatory pressure on social media firms, and some states have attempted to pass bills that would curb the use of algorithmic feeds.

Will it pass? Despite bipartisan support for the two bills, they have faced fierce opposition from industry groups and organizations such as the American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) that fear that it could impede free speech.

Even if the two bills don’t make it out of Washington’s gridlock, regulators will likely continue pressing for change. Concerns about teen mental health have spiked—a recent Gallup survey found that one in three Gen Z teens feel the need to be “perfect” due to social media—and regulators around the world are beginning to push back.