(Dec 12): Reddit Inc is asking Australia’s highest court to overturn the nation’s social media ban for youths, initiating the first legal challenge from Big Tech against a landmark effort other countries are considering joining.
The US social media company said it’s filed a petition with Australia’s High Court arguing that the ban is invalid. The move infringes the implied freedom of political communication, Reddit said in an application to get the court to review the ban.
Australia this week became the world’s first democracy to require technology giants, like Reddit and Meta Platforms Inc’s Instagram, to ban users under 16 or face fines of up to A$49.5 million (US$33 million or $42.62 million). The law, passed last year, came in response to mounting concerns about social media’s harms on children.
Reddit argues the platform shouldn’t be classified as an “age-restricted social media platform” if the law is upheld, according to the filing, as its sole purpose is not based on social interactions.
The offices of Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese and Communications Minister Anika Wells didn’t reply to emails seeking comment on Reddit’s legal challenge.
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This marks the second legal challenge put forth against the ban, following a lawsuit in the High Court lodged by two teenagers before it was enacted.
“There are more effective ways for the Australian government to accomplish our shared goal of protecting youth,” Reddit said in a post on its website Friday. The law “carries some serious privacy and political expression issues for everyone on the internet”.
A Reddit spokesperson said the company is still complying with the law, including mandatory age collection during sign-ups and blocking under-16 users.
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The company said in its post that the legal move wasn’t an attempt to avoid losing young users. The majority of people on the platform are adults, it said.
Still, the law forces “intrusive and potentially insecure verification processes on adults as well as minors”, Reddit said in its post. It also prevents teens from participating in community experiences with peers, including discussing politics, and creates an “illogical patchwork” of platforms that are and aren’t included in the ban.
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