Reddit argues it isn’t like other social platforms in case against Australia’s social media ban

Summary

In a move worthy of a post on the Not Like Other Girls subreddit, Reddit, one of the world’s largest social platforms, is arguing that it isn’t like other, actual social media sites, as the company seeks to overturn Australia’s law banning children under 16 years of age from social media. In a lawsuit filed with Australia’s top court, Reddit argues the law, which came into force on December 10, limits free political discourse by preventing children from airing their views online, and should be overturned. And if the legislation isn’t overturned, the company says it should be exempted from the law because it doesn’t meet the legislation’s definition of a “social media platform.” Reddit is essentially asking the Australian High Court to address some of the questions raised about the legislation, which requires 10 major services to deactivate under-16s’ accounts and prevent them from using the app. Critics argue that the law infringes on children’s rights, and companies have sought to raise questions about what “social media” even defines. Indeed, calling itself a “collection of public fora arranged by subject,” Reddit brought up definitions of the word “social” in its filing to make the case that “it is not the sole or a significant purpose of Reddit to enable persons to interact ‘in a social manner’.” “Reddit enables online interactions about the content that users post on the site. It facilitates knowledge sharing from one user to other users. It is not a significant purpose of the site to enable interactions engaged in because of a particular user’s relationship with or interest in another user as a person […] Reddit is significantly different from other sites that allow for users to become “friends” with one another, or to post photos about themselves, or to organise events,” the filing reads. In a post accompanying the filing, Reddit admin LastBluejay said the law carries “some serious privacy and political expression issues for everyone on the internet.” Techcru...