Adoption: 06/05/2026
The Protection of Youth and Minors in the Digital Sphere
SEDEC-VIII/010
THE EUROPEAN COMMITTEE OF THE REGIONS (CoR)
- recognises that children and young people need more protection in the digital sphere and that this requires coordinated and targeted actions by the players in the multilevel system (EU, Member States, local and regional level), including effective enforcement of digital legislation, age appropriate safeguards by design, and strengthened digital literacy and prevention measures at local and regional level;
- underlines that, with its regulatory frameworks, such as the Audiovisual Media Services Directive (AVMSD) and the Digital Services Act (DSA) (including the guidelines under Article 28), the EU is seen as a regulatory frontrunner, especially with regard to the responsibilities of platforms;
- calls on the EU institutions and the Member States to hold digital platforms fully accountable for improving the protection of minors online;
- calls on the European legislator to clarify the relationship and demarcation between the scopes of the individual legislative acts, to reduce red tape. In particular, it should be clarified that the AVMSD is the special regulatory framework for regulating media content and therefore has primacy, without prejudice to the complementary application of the DSA;
- suggests, on the basis of digital usage habits, extending the AVMSD’s rules on discoverability to ensure that young people have access to content provided by audiovisual media services of general interest, thereby enabling them to develop an informed opinion about politics and society;
- stresses the need for local, regional and target-group-specific services in order to promote media literacy. Schools and local and regional authorities are key players and multipliers when it comes to promoting media literacy.
- recognises that children and young people need more protection in the digital sphere and that this requires coordinated and targeted actions by the players in the multilevel system (EU, Member States, local and regional level), including effective enforcement of digital legislation, age appropriate safeguards by design, and strengthened digital literacy and prevention measures at local and regional level;
- underlines that, with its regulatory frameworks, such as the Audiovisual Media Services Directive (AVMSD) and the Digital Services Act (DSA) (including the guidelines under Article 28), the EU is seen as a regulatory frontrunner, especially with regard to the responsibilities of platforms;
- calls on the EU institutions and the Member States to hold digital platforms fully accountable for improving the protection of minors online;
- calls on the European legislator to clarify the relationship and demarcation between the scopes of the individual legislative acts, to reduce red tape. In particular, it should be clarified that the AVMSD is the special regulatory framework for regulating media content and therefore has primacy, without prejudice to the complementary application of the DSA;
- suggests, on the basis of digital usage habits, extending the AVMSD’s rules on discoverability to ensure that young people have access to content provided by audiovisual media services of general interest, thereby enabling them to develop an informed opinion about politics and society;
- stresses the need for local, regional and target-group-specific services in order to promote media literacy. Schools and local and regional authorities are key players and multipliers when it comes to promoting media literacy.