But only on videos that are produced in the UK, where Sony Music UK, Universal Music UK and Warner Music UK will send their content through the British Board of Film Classification (BBFC).
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A pilot program was launched last October to test the system. If, for instance, we told you that in the of 132 music videos submitted by UK labels to the BBFC for certification, only one had been rated 18, would your immediate reaction be “oh, that’s good”, or “oh, what was it?”
Dizzee Rascal’s “Couple of Stacks” is the only track to get an “18” rating – it features the English grime artist murdering people with a knife.
The minister for internet safety and security, Baroness Shields, said the government would “continue to work with the industry to develop ways to help parents to better protect children online from explicit adult or violent content”.
Online music videos will be given a rating in the same way as movies, meaning parents and viewers are pre-warned about the sort of content they can expect in the video.
Working with the BBFC, Youtube and Vevo are to start enforcing age restrictions on music videos that contain explicit content.
The government is set to announce a similar six-month pilot program for independent record labels.
Geoff Taylor, BPI chief executive, said: “Britain is a world leader in making exciting and original music, in part because our artists have a freedom to express themselves that we rightly cherish”.
Nic Jones, EVP international at Vevo, said: “Vevo have been participating in the BBFC’s age ratings pilot since its inception and welcome news that that scheme is to be permanently backed by UK major labels”.
Music videos produced in the UK that are shown online will now come with an age rating in a bid to protect children. “These ratings are in addition to the controls we already provide on YouTube including the ability for uploaders to add age warnings to videos and a restricted mode”.
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Independent labels will be encouraged to join in, and some are taking part in a pilot scheme now. The labels will have to submit the videos to the BBFC who will then make a decision on the rating. UK-produced music videos will now have an age rating. So think of it as a tech education programme.
