Australia to let social media users ‘opt out’ of algorithm-based feeds

Australia plans to give social media users the ability to switch off algorithm-based feeds in proposed legislation, making the latest move by governments and regulators to rein in Big Tech this year.

Prime Minister Anthony Albanese’s government said Tuesday that it’s proposing the “My Feed, My Way” initiative, which would force social media platforms to allow users over the age of 16 to either opt into having a feed that recommends personalized content by an algorithm or “opt out,” so they can only see content from friends and creators they choose to follow.

The legislation, which is being drafted and released Tuesday for targeted consultation, would require platforms to send notifications to new and existing users so they can choose their default feed. Social media companies that fail to comply could face penalties of up to 109.2 million Australian dollars ($79 million).

The measures, set to be introduced to the Parliament of Australia this year, will also require AI chatbots, online games and other digital services to take action to protect under-18s from addictive design features.

“This is not about giving government control. It’s about giving people control. It’s about putting choice back into the hands of Australians online,” Albanese said at a press conference on Tuesday regarding the proposed law.

“This is sensible, pragmatic, practical reform. It gives users choice, and it will hold the big tech companies responsible for inaction,” he added.

Several social media platforms already let users separate content they see from friends and people they know, in some capacity. TikTok, for example, has a Friends tab that shows friends’ posts alongside its primarily recommendation-driven feed.

Facebook offers a friends-only feed, while Instagram provides Following and Favorites feeds. YouTube has a Subscriptions feed, and Snapchat separates friends’ Stories from public discovery content.

Last year, Australia became the first country in the world to introduce a social media ban for teens under the age of 16. The U.K., France and Spain were among the other countries looking to curb children’s access to social media.

The ban has received mixed feedback, with Albanese referring to it as “world-leading,” but studies from the country’s eSafety Commissioner showed that three months after the ban, over 81% of Australian children were still using at least one age-restricted platform. That’s hardly down from the 86% of children using those platforms before the ban.

The report also found that 58% of teens were still using social media daily or more often, down from roughly 60% before the ban.

As part of the settlement, Meta agreed it would make changes to its platforms in a matter of months for users under the age of 18, including being able to choose a non-algorithmic feed. It would also implement a two-hour daily usage limit and disable extreme makeup and cosmetic surgery filters as part of several changes.

Earlier this year, Meta and YouTube lost in a social media addiction trial in Los Angeles, which was brought by a plaintiff who claimed that addictive features such as autoplay and infinite scrolling on those platforms damaged her mental health.

Meta lost a separate social-media case in March brought by New Mexico Attorney General Raul Torrez, after a court found that the company violated the state’s child-safety laws and ordered it to pay over $900 million in penalties.

California Attorney General Rob Bonta, who led the most recent trial against Meta, has said he’ll target TikTok, YouTube and Snapchat next.