Ohio can require social media companies to get a parent’s permission before letting children under 16 onto their platforms, a US appeals court ruled on Thursday, reviving a law the tech industry had managed to freeze.
The decision from the Cincinnati-based 6th US Circuit Court of Appeals overturns a lower court that had blocked the measure, and it hands the state a win in a fight that is playing out across the country.
The panel split two to one. Its majority found that the law did not violate the free-speech protections of the First Amendment, the constitutional argument that the industry has leaned on to challenge child-access rules in state after state.
By rejecting that argument, the court cleared the way for Ohio to enforce a statute that had been on hold since the trade group NetChoice secured an injunction against it.
What the law actually requires is parental consent and disclosure. Companies must obtain a parent’s permission before a child under 16 uses social media or gaming apps, and must provide their content guidelines so families can see what would be moderated or censored on a child’s profile.
