Czech Prime Minister Andrej Babis said he supports banning social media use for children under 15, citing France as an example of a country that has recently moved to impose limits on young users.
“The experts I know say that it is terribly harmful to children. Terribly harmful,” Babis said in a video message posted on X on Sunday. “And we must protect our children.” He didn't say what specific steps his government plans to take or when.
If the Czech Republic moves forward, it would join a growing group of European countries that are pushing for restrictions on social media use by minors. Such a step would limit or cut off millions of young users from platforms regulators describe as harmful and addictive — as well as dent the advertising revenue they generate.
Australia was the first country to implement such a policy, covering Meta Platforms Inc.'s Instagram and Facebook, Snap Inc., Elon Musk's X, TikTok and Google's YouTube.
In Europe, Spain became the latest country to propose a ban on services with the country's Socialist Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez criticizing the conduct of social media companies in a speech.
At least 10 other countries — France, the UK, Portugal, Denmark, Greece, Norway, Poland, Austria, Ireland and the Netherlands — as well as the European Union are considering some kind of restrictions.
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