U.S.

This state has become the first to regulate child influencers

The law will go into effect in 2024.

A teenager looks at her phone in Bloomington, Ill., on Tuesday, May 9, 2023.
AP Photo/Claire Savage
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Illinois has become the first state to add protections for child influencers and the children of influencers.

Earlier this month, Illinois Gov. J.B. Pritzker signed SB1782 into law. The bill was passed through the state Senate in March.

So, what does this law do?

Basically, it creates a legal course of action for child vloggers to take against their parents when they are featured in videos and not compensated properly. This can include family vlog accounts, for example.

Content creators have to set aside some of the earnings in a trust for minors to have once they become adults if the video uses their “likeness, name, or photograph”.

Are child influencers getting paid for their content?
Are child influencers getting paid for their content?

Are child influencers getting paid for their content?

Family vlogs, where parents show off their lives and kids, can rack up a lot of money, but none of those dollars are guaranteed to go to the children.

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The amount of money depends on the amount of views and the amount of time the minor appears or is heard in the video. If multiple minors appear in one video, the earnings must be divided among them.

The creators also have to keep records of this information and data. The trust created for the minor will be available to them when they are 18 in most cases.

If content creators don't keep records or set aside earnings, they can be sued for actual damages, punitive damages, and the cost of the action.

The law will go into effect in 2024.