Mediadecreet (Flemish Decree of 27 March 2009 on radio broadcasting and television), Article 176/4, measures by video-sharing platform providers
In force
Mediadecreet, art. 176/4
Effective 2021-05-09 · Applies to private
A video-sharing platform provider under the jurisdiction of the Flemish Community must take appropriate measures to protect minors from programmes, user-generated content and commercial communication that could impair their development. Those measures include setting up and using systems to verify the age of the platform's users for that content.
Programmes, user-generated content and commercial communication showing pornographic images or images of gratuitous violence must be offered encrypted or placed under effective parental control. A provider falls under the jurisdiction of the Flemish Community when it is established in the Dutch language region, or in the bilingual Brussels-Capital region where its activities belong exclusively to the Flemish Community.
An infringement of the decree can bring an administrative fine of up to 125,000 euros. The Flemish Regulator for the Media supervises whether providers take these measures and apply them.
| Enforcement body | Vlaamse Regulator voor de Media (Flemish Regulator for the Media) |
Source: Full text of law
Décret relatif aux services de médias audiovisuels et aux services de partage de vidéos (French Community), Article 2.5-2, measures by video-sharing platform providers
In force
Décret du 4 février 2021 (Communauté française), art. 2.5-2
Effective 2021-04-15 · Applies to private
A video-sharing platform provider under the jurisdiction of the French Community must take appropriate measures to protect minors from programmes and user-generated videos that could harm their physical, mental or moral development. Those measures include a system to verify the age of the user and a parental control that the user controls. The most harmful content, such as pornography and gratuitous violence, is subject to the strictest access-control measures.
Personal data of minors collected or generated under these measures may not be used for commercial purposes such as direct marketing, profiling or behavioral advertising. A provider falls under the jurisdiction of the French Community when it is established in the French-language region, or in the bilingual Brussels-Capital region where its activity belongs exclusively to the French Community. The Collège d'autorisation et de contrôle assesses whether the measures providers take are appropriate.
It can impose an administrative fine of at least 250 euros and at most 3 percent of annual turnover excluding tax, or 5 percent where the breach is repeated within five years. The decree entered into force on the twentieth day after its publication in the Moniteur belge.
| Enforcement body | Collège d'autorisation et de contrôle of the Conseil supérieur de l'audiovisuel (CSA) |
Source: Full text of law
Dekret über die Mediendienste und die Kinovorstellungen (German-speaking Community), Article 32, obligations of video-sharing platform providers
In force
Dekret vom 1. März 2021 (Deutschsprachige Gemeinschaft), Art. 32
Effective 2021-04-12 · Applies to private
A video-sharing platform provider under the jurisdiction of the German-speaking Community must take appropriate measures to protect minors from programmes, user-generated videos and audiovisual commercial communication that could impair their physical, mental or moral development. Those measures include, where appropriate, systems to verify the age of the platform's users for that content. They also include parental control systems managed by the end user.
The most harmful content is subject to the strictest access-control measures. Personal data of minors collected for age verification and parental control may not be used for commercial purposes such as direct marketing, profiling or behavioral advertising. A video-sharing platform provider not itself established in the German-speaking area is treated as established there when it has a parent or subsidiary company established there or belongs to a group with a company established there.
The Media Council (Medienrat) sets the mechanisms for assessing whether the providers' measures are appropriate. The Media Council can impose an administrative fine of up to 25,000 euros, which is set at 5 percent of annual turnover excluding tax where the breach is repeated within five years. The decree entered into force on the day of its publication in the Belgian State Gazette.
| Enforcement body | Medienrat der Deutschsprachigen Gemeinschaft (Media Council of the German-speaking Community) |
Source: Full text of law