<div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><span>Ahead of the impending under-16 social media ban, nine.com.au has spoken with a number of young content creators to find out what they think about the upcoming changes.</span></div></div><div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><span>Some describe it as a "double-edged sword". Others believe that removing under-16s from their audience will have long-lasting effects on their engagement, audience reach and, subsequently, their livelihoods.</span></div></div><div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><span>Mackenzie McIntyre is a creator from Queensland who creates relatable-style observational content, amassing a huge audience in the process.</span></div></div><div><div id="adspot-mobile-medium"></div></div><div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><span>McIntyre has garnered over 27 million YouTube views and has over 400,000 TikTok followers. Those numbers could soon take a huge hit once the restrictions come into effect on December 10.</span></div></div><div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><span>"I've had a lot of friends, especially who make content for high school, people in high school, pretty concerned recently because it's obviously going to have a huge impact on their engagement." </span><a href="https://www.instagram.com/mackenziemcintyre/" rel="" target="" title="Mackenzie McIntyre"><span>Mackenzie McIntyre</span></a><span> said.</span></div></div><div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><strong><span>What's your take on the upcoming ban? Let us know at joseph.sahyoun@nine.com.au.</span></strong></div></div><div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><span>"The freedom to create as a young person is being really stripped away," McIntyre said.</span></div></div><div><div class="OUTBRAIN" data-reactroot="" data-src="//www.9news.com.au/technology/social-media-creators-react-to-upcoming-under-16-ban/1c45ad48-77de-46b6-aced-903bb437924a" data-widget-id="AR_5"></div></div><div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><span>"Not just like someone who's already creating for viewers, but for people who want to create."</span></div></div><div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><span>"When I was 15 years old, all I wanted to be was a content creator, so I think that plays a big role in it too."</span></div></div><div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><span>Creators like Western Australia's </span><a href="https://www.instagram.com/empire.family.official/" rel="" target="" title="Empire Family"><span>Empire Family</span></a><span> </span><a href="https://www.9news.com.au/national/australian-youtube-family-announces-move-to-the-uk-to-avoid-upcoming-social-media-ban/fb06c972-d4fb-415b-87ea-6f932443961f" rel="" target="" title="announced"><span>announced</span></a><span> to their 1.8 million followers in October that they moved to the UK to avoid the upcoming social media ban. </span></div></div><div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><span>"I've got a lot of friends who have already, in preparation for the ban or just the regulations that are coming in, have moved to America or moved to Bali, or Indonesia keep that younger audience," said </span><a href="https://www.instagram.com/j0siahyoung/" rel="" target="" title="Josiah Young"><span>Josiah Young</span></a><span>.</span></div></div><div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><span>Josiah is a creator who has been posting relatable content skits since he was 18 and believes that creators will have to adapt to the changes.</span></div></div><div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><span>"I will definitely have to start tailoring some of my content."</span></div></div><div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><span>"I've even started thinking about maybe pushing up that age to kind of end of high school, early university days sort of relatability."</span></div></div><div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><span>"It might end up being a double-edged sword where kids just end up in these really unsafe places because they are just scrambling to find somewhere that they can continue consuming the content that they've grown up with."</span></div></div><div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><span>"I think it's almost like it hasn't really sunk in for a lot of creators that there will need to be some sort of change."</span></div></div><div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><span>Dane Clarke is the creator of </span><a href="https://www.instagram.com/clarkeys.rl.column/" rel="" target="" title="Clarkey's Rugby League Column"><span>Clarkey's Rugby League Column</span></a></div></div><div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><span>Clarke's daily rugby league content posted to his Instagram account has fostered an audience of nearly 150,000 followers, including a mix of people who are set to have their accounts wiped on December 10.</span></div></div><div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><span>"It will certainly affect my engagement numbers, as the younger generation is a highly engaged portion of my followers," Clarke said.</span></div></div><div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><span>"Whenever I meet someone under the age of 18 or looking like they're in high school, they usually tell me that they love my page and get all their news from it daily.</span></div></div><div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><span>"I suspect plenty of them will just find an alternate method to access social media. Kids are resourceful, and I am sure they are going to find hundreds of ways to loophole this ban."</span></div></div><div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><span>The government has placed the responsibility of enforcing the laws into the hands of the social media platforms included in the ban.</span></div></div><div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><span>This includes removing and deactivating any accounts used by anyone under the age of 16, as well as preventing the creation of any additional accounts and preventing workarounds that may allow children to bypass the restrictions.</span></div></div><div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><span>The platforms set to be age-restricted include: Facebook, Instagram, Snapchat, Threads, TikTok, X, YouTube, Kick, Twitch and Reddit.</span></div></div><div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><span>However, there are no penalties for under-16s who access age-restricted platforms, with the government stating that the purpose is to protect young Australians rather than punishing and isolating them.</span></div></div><div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><span>Other creators have echoed this sentiment, believing that under-16s will find their way around the new legislation.</span></div></div><div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><span>"I really don't think a lot of them will settle for just not being able to do it," McIntrye said.</span></div></div><div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><span>"These young people are going to have to find alternative ways to watch this content, whether by using their parents' account, then that messes up all the demographics. statistics and everything."</span></div></div><div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><span>"That can also create a dangerous environment because then they may be shown more adult content because the age range is a lot higher."</span></div></div><div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><span>Social media influencer agencies have been preparing for months in the lead-up to the new laws.</span></div></div><div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><span>"Under-16s often drive trends and virality, though their direct purchasing power is limited," said Head of Brand and Partnerships at Sticki and DataSauce, Rachael Webb.</span></div></div><div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><span>"Over the last few months, our focus has been on education, helping brands understand that this legislation represents a delay in when young audiences can legally participate, rather than the disappearance of youth influence online."</span></div></div><div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><span>"The key challenge for creators is understanding how this will affect their analytics. With Influencer marketing now highly data-driven, engagement metrics may fluctuate as under-16 accounts are removed or restricted."</span></div></div><div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><span>Webb is urging creators to be proactive and use the new laws as a way to test new approaches and formats to see what works as the social media landscape continues to evolve rapidly.</span></div></div><div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><span>"Test new angles of content, explore what resonates with your other audience segments, and experiment with new creative styles."</span></div></div><div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><span>"It's rare for a creator's audience to be made up entirely of under-16s, but many will see shifts in their community makeup."</span></div></div><div class="block-content"><div class="styles__Container-sc-1ylecsg-0 goULFa"><a href="https://www.9news.com.au/national/how-to-follow-9news-digital/29855bb1-ad3d-4c38-bc25-3cb52af1216f" target="_blank"><strong><em><span>DOWNLOAD THE 9NEWS APP</span></em></strong></a><strong><em><span>: Stay across all the latest in breaking news, sport, politics and the weather via our news app and get notifications sent straight to your smartphone. 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