Online media Content restriction guidelines:

Online video content restriction guidelines:

Over the years the online video submission websites such as "YouTube" and many others like it; have been getting more and more strict about their content submission guidelines. All the while using automated systems to regulate and "Detect" content violations within accordance with their submittal policies. The problem is that while this DOES seem like a good idea as it allows content to be filtered based upon marked interest, user interest, and more importantly Ad revenue interest within their site's revenue streams; it has however caused a wide number of problems and has further resulted in direct freezing and limitation of content being produced IF the content in question is questionable within accordance to the market interest of the companies that pay royalties to YouTube for their provided commercials. This brief article will take a look at the very real problem, and then offer a potential solution that sites like YouTube could administer that would allow for users to submit content of nearly any manor within the limitations of law, while also restricting said content from sensitive eyes such as Children and other revenue streams where sensitive content may not be something those interested parties wish to have associated to their Brands image.

Lately, in the last 3 years, the controlling interest of the internet had been transferred away from the FCC (Federal Communications Commission) and transferred over to the regulatory control of the FTC (Federal Financial Trade commission). As soon as this happened, any site that had any system of monetization, that was prior governed under the legal protections of being a media center, instantly changed its entire business operation and procedure into one that adopted a more capitalistic approach to online services and media content handling. Almost immediately (with a few months), YouTube, in particular, began to drastically "lockdown" on oftentimes long-standing media content producers, especially within the online, mobile, and console gaming systems. By default, nearly 90% of all gaming content within the last 4 years has been hard pushed under threat of demonetization, page banning, or being instantly flagged as "Inappropriate content" due to the newer age restrictions. A great deal of this is because the YouTube AI sees Video game-related content as being dominantly "For kids".

Because of this; YouTube took a more scorched earth policy to the new laws targeting and protecting children, and started to go overboard with an overgeneralization of content restriction, instead of allowing content creators and users, to have different accounts that they could use based on something resembling a more closely fitting structure to that of the US television content restriction ratings. This would, in turn, allow the viewers both registered and nonregistered, the ability to choose what rating they are comfortable with being exposed to, at the time of initial interaction with the site.

I project and propose that Visual Media sites such as YouTube adopt a default landing page with an initial menu presenting the choice of predefined content restrictions. This would allow the user to select what type of content they are seeking to watch within akin to age group demographics, which would in turn access the content database and parse only the content "approved" by YouTube administrators as being that particular age restriction. While this would also allow the content creators the unique ability to select what rating they want their content to be listed as. This would also give YouTube the ability to delegate more of their processing power to more age sensitive content, and have to worry less about content intended for Adult audiences only.

Then based on the setting the content creator chooses, they personally would choose and determine the level of censorship that they want their content to be subject to. Thus the more adult the content is, the less YouTube Scrutinizes the content, because the content at the more extreme end such as "A" or "NR", would only be made available to accounts that are first of all logged in and secondly, have those settings checked as being appropriate for that user. The more the content is aimed at specific younger age ranges, the more YouTube would then need to scrutinize the content and ensure it fits the intended appropriate age. Inversely, if YouTube for any reason deems content released to them to not fit the Content creators intended submitted demographic; then YouTube simply flags the content as "Inappropriate" for the age in question, and "bump's" it to the next age level above the one it was submitted at. Then each time the bot processes through each iteration of a bumped content, it could then re-review the content and test against the current demographic restrictions that it is in and give it either a "Pass" or "Fail" rating. If it passes the rating, it stays in that demographic. If it fails? It is then bumped up again and so on.

This is because more age-sensitive content that has fewer restrictions upon the content, would need far less scrutiny than say the content that had been listed as "Y7" or O3. These age guidelines would be a target to either age up to 7 years of age, or preschool-aged children respectively. Inversely more sensitive content would require a proven "Adult" content, based on age restrictions. Inversely the more publicly facing content would instead be content that is more so age-targeted to a more "General" Audience, of persons assumed to be at least 12 years of age or younger.

This way little Timmy who happens to be 9 years old, can't log into YouTube without an adult account, and watch new "Die Antwerd", "Two Live Crew" videos without their parent's permission. Nor for that matter can they view or access any other potentially explicit or Age limiting content, that is rated above their age demographic. For apps like "Youtube kids" the default viewing age could be set much lower, and all content for a higher demographic would either not be accessible through that ap, or require a special account and age-based passcode to access. It could even set the default age being closer to the general age I would set the default of YouTube without a registered account to be "O7" in general, or whatever is closest to their current format, and then make users and creators choose on their account settings one of the options listed below. With the assumption, that a higher rating allows lower content, but restricts higher content. So If I as an adult selects "T14" for my account; that means that all content ratings below T14 (U3, Y7, O7, T12, & T14), will be openly shown, but content above it in age range (A & NR) will not.

This, in turn, allows content creators to "select" where they believe their content fits and limits how heavy-handed Youtube needs to be about content, because the content in question is then filtered based on the creator's settings, against the user's settings. A random user by default is shown the lowest common setting for kids that acceptable by law, and to see that cool new music video by M&M or what have you, requires certain ratings and a specific account type if it is in a filtered restrictions margins. Additionally, all they have to do past that point is require the content creator to also select what rating type it fits within when uploading the video, while also being limited in what they can post, if the content being posted fits into a lower rating section, but their account is a higher rating. Such as "MXR Plays" being listed as "Adult", and trying to post content into the U3, or even T14 age restrictions. The video, even IF it was nothing but cute kittens, would not be allowed to be posted into that age rating, because the account posting it, is set to "Adult" only content. It's a simple system, that while would require the bots to assess the database and reclassify everything; would also solve a ton of headaches, arguments, and content creators leaving because they got banned over a miscommunication.

Projected Content restriction guidelines and their associated easy-to-see "Youtube" logo colors.

U3 – "Under 3" - Content suitable for ages 0–3; - Bright Blue on White

Y7 – "Youth 7" - Content suitable for ages 0–7; - Bright Yellow on White

O7 – "Older 7" - Content suitable for ages 7–16; - Bright Red on White

T12 – "Teen12" - Content suitable for children ages 12 and up; - Bright Green On black

T14 – "Teen 14" - Content suitable for Highschool students - Bright Orange on Black

A – "Adult" - Content suitable only for adults ages 18 and up. - Bright Purple on Black

NR – "Not Rated" - Content has no restrictions, other than restriction by Federal law and "MAY" contain pornographic or heavily restricted images - Black "X" on Red