Tag: YouTube
Gamers reveal ‘toxic behaviour’ to MPs during committee hearing
Gamers are regularly told by others to kill themselves for not playing a game well, MPs were told at a committee hearing into new technologies. Two former gamers, James Good and Matus Mikus, shared their alarming experiences of “toxic behaviour” when playing live multiplayer games online, adding that harassment towards female players is particularly rife.…
Digital Secretary Jeremy Wright to meet Mark Zuckerberg for internet safety talks
Facebook boss Mark Zuckerberg is to discuss internet safety with the Digital Secretary Jeremy Wright today, as the Government looks to tackle online harms with legislative measures to protect vulnerable people. Mr Wright has flown out to San Francisco with Digital Minister Margot James this week, to meet with companies in Silicon Valley, the world’s…
YouTube updates strike policy against content that breaks rules
YouTube is changing the way it penalises users that breach its community guidelines, by simplifying the three-strike policy it enforces with more consistent punishments. The Google-owned video sharing platform said it was updating the strikes in response to confusion about the penalties, with many claiming the punishment did not match up to the problem. For…
Digital copyright reforms move a step further after approval of text
Controversial copyright law reforms that could affect what people can share on websites like YouTube have moved one step closer to becoming a reality, after EU decision makers agreed on changes to the text. The Committee of Permanent Representatives in the European Union (Coreper) concluded discussions on Friday evening on new compromise proposals, which will…
Children’s Commissioner urges social media to protect children from ‘disturbing content’
Social media companies must take more responsibility for protecting children from disturbing content on their platforms, the Children’s Commissioner for England has said. In an open letter to the platforms most used by children – YouTube, Facebook (which owns Instagram), Snapchat and Pinterest – Anne Longfield urged the companies to back a statutory duty of…
YouTube removes adverts for Britain First
YouTube has removed adverts for far-right group Britain First after clips promoting the organisation appeared before videos on the site. The adverts were taken out after the Guardian contacted the video-sharing platform about the clips, which had appeared before content linked to Brexit and British politics, the newspaper said. It reported that the video showed…
YouTube to ban Bird Box-style prank videos
YouTube has updated its guidelines to ban prank and dangerous challenge videos. The Google-owned video platform said that while it is a home for light-hearted prank videos, it wanted to reinforce that any stunts that place people in danger are against site policy. The platform has been home to a variety of challenges – such…
Hackers take over Google Chromecast devices to support YouTuber PewDiePie
PewDiePie (Hannah McKay/PA) Hackers have taken control of Google Chromecast smart TV devices around the world in a stunt to raise awareness of cyber security and to promote YouTuber PewDiePie. They claim to have gained access to more than 70,000 Google Chromecast devices – used to stream content on a TV…
Fortnite streamer Ninja reportedly earned nearly £8m in 2018
The world’s most popular Fortnite streamer, Ninja (pictured above), estimates he earned almost 10 million dollars (£8 million) from playing the video game in 2018. Tyler Blevins, better known as Ninja, broadcasts himself playing the battle royale game on YouTube and streaming platform Twitch and now boasts millions of subscribers to his various channels, thousands…
Four major events in 2019 that could transform the internet
Harmful content and privacy are some of the issues that will be addressed by landmark decisions this year, as governments across the world look to make tech giants and social networks more accountable. The UK will decide whether to regulate the likes of Facebook – and if so, how – while an EU-wide crackdown on…
