Google may make kid-friendly YouTube and Gmail accounts

By Williams Pelegrin August 19, 2014

As things currently stand, the Children’s Online Privacy Protection Act (COPPA) places strict limits on how information about children under 13 years of age is collected for advertising purposes. Because of this, children aren’t allowed to create a Gmail or YouTube account. However, Google might be working on kid-friendly accounts, according to a report by The Wall Street Journal.

Related: One isn’t enough: Google set to launch “YouTube Music Key” service to go along with Google Play

These accounts, specifically geared toward children, would allow parents to control how their children use the services and what information about them is collected. Google is already working on a kid-friendly version of YouTube that would allow parents to oversee what their kids are watching, according to a report by The Information.

Currently, if you’re under 13, Google will direct you to a page saying that, because you do not meet the age requirement, your account could not be created. While that likely hasn’t stopped children from masquerading as adults, this could be seen as a power play on Google’s part. With Google expanding its user base to include children under 13, we could see the company go into different directions to retain the young user base.

Related: Google plugs its Field Trip app into Google Now

Editors' Recommendations

Topics

Williams Pelegrin

Former Digital Trends Contributor

Williams is an avid New York Yankees fan, speaks Spanish, resides in Colorado, and has an affinity for Frosted Flakes. Send…

Mobile

This Google Pixel 8a leak just spoiled everything about the phone

A person holding the Google Pixel 8, showing the back of the phone.

Previous leaked render of the Google Pixel 8a. Smart Prix

We are, in theory, only just over a month away from an official unveiling of Google's newest midrange smartphone, the Google Pixel 8a. However, it seems you won't have to wait until Google I/O 2024 to find out what Google has planned, as a leaker has just revealed everything we need to know about the latest entry in the Pixel roster.

Mobile

These are the best Android 15 features you need to know about

Android 15 has entered its latter leg of testing among developers, and in the coming months, a beta build will finally be released for the masses. So far, across the two Developer Preview builds that Google has released, we’ve encountered a handful of new features that will make life easier for smartphone users in meaningful ways.

Among them is a notification cooldown system that shields you from a barrage of audio alerts from your apps. Google has already detailed the changelog to a healthy extent, but not all new tricks have been implemented yet. But there’s still enough to unpack in Android 15, and some of those notable additions are detailed below:
Partial screen sharing

Mobile

Have one of these Google Pixel phones? You’re getting Circle to Search

Someone holding the Google Pixel 6 Pro and Pixel 6a next to each other.

Circle to Search — Google's excellent search tool that debuted on the Samsung Galaxy S24 earlier this year — is about to become available to more people. Specifically, it's coming to a bunch more Pixel devices, giving even more people a chance to use it for themselves.

As the name implies, Circle to Search allows you to circle or scribble anything on your screen to perform a Google Search for it. It's great for those times you see something on your phone and want to know more about it, but aren't sure how to type out a Google Search for it. It launched on the Galaxy S24, S24 Plus, and S24 Ultra in January and then quickly made its way to the Google Pixel 8 and Pixel 8 Pro.