Online music videos are to be given age ratings in a bid to protect children from explicit images and lyrics. Top artists including Sam Smith, George Ezra and Joss Stone could see their music videos handed 12, 15 or 18 certifications under the government-backed pilot scheme. The British Board of Film Certification, which is running the initiative, has estimated that one in five videos released will be deemed unfit for those under 12. Video sharing sites YouTube and Vevo have signed up to the scheme and pledged to include the warnings on clips uploaded to their sites. Vevo puts the rating in the top corner of the video, while YouTube includes it in the information beneath . However some of the world’s raunchiest performers, such as Miley Cyrus and Rihanna, are not covered by the scheme and there are no measures in place to enforce the guidelines . Rapper Dizzee Rascal has already seen his video ‘Couple of Stacks’ rated 18 under the initiative. Ellie Goulding’s ‘Love Me Like You Do’, recorded for the film Fifty Shades of Grey, was handed a 15 warning and Kasabian’s ‘Stevie’ was rated 12. But even with these ratings in place, there is nothing to stop younger music fans stumbling across the inappropriate clips which often include sexual imagery, violence and obscene language. Only videos released by the British arms of Sony Music UK, Universal Music UK and Warner Music UK are covered by the scheme and the companies are free to choose which videos they want to submit for certification. This means videos from artists such as Miley Cyrus, Nicky Minaj and Rihanna, who are not signed to those labels and are known for their raunchy videos, will not be included in the ratings system. Video sharing sites YouTube and Vevo have signed up to the scheme and pledged to include the warnings on clips uploaded to their sites. Vevo puts the rating in the top corner of the video, while YouTube includes it in the information beneath. However, there are no checks to make sure the person watching is of the correct age. YouTube is the world’s most popular video sharing platform, with one billion worldwide users. It hosts videos for the vast majority of musicians. Some of the world’s raunchiest performers, such as Miley Cyrus and Rihanna, are not covered by the scheme and there are no measures in place to enforce the guidelines . A spokesman for Vevo said: ‘There is no signing in as such or filters – although this is a next step that may be added in time. At the moment this is about giving parents and users the information they need to make a more informed viewing choice and decision. To be effective it requires that parents also take an active interest in what their children are watching.’ Campaigners said last night that the latest move is a ‘fantastic step’ but called for stricter enforcement and for all music videos to carry the ‘kite mark’ of an official age rating to help parents protect their children. The scheme has been running since October last year and has so far seen 84 videos rated, with 27 given a 12 classification, 39 a 15 and one a 18. The BBFC has estimated that one in five videos released will be deemed unsuitable for children under the age of 12. Top artists including Sam Smith, George Ezra and Joss Stone could see their music videos handed 12, 15 or 18 certifications under the government-backed pilot scheme. Dizzee Rascal’s video was given the highest rating because of ‘strong bloody violence, gore, very strong language’. The three and a half minute clip contains extreme violence with the rapper ripping the heart out of a stripping woman, brandishing a knife while covered in blood and decapitating a woman whose body then stumbles around the room. He also holds a family hostage and serves a cake with severed fingers instead of candles. He is shown pulling out a person’s eyeball, slitting one woman’s throat and cutting another’s head in half. Vivienne Pattison, from campaign group Media Watch-UK, said: ‘When parents are surveyed, the two areas that came up as being particularly problematic were soap operas and music videos, those are the two areas that come up again and again as the issue. One in five, that’s a huge number of videos. 'What happens is one video pushes the boundaries and the next artists is under pressure to do the same in order to get people talking about it. It becomes a great merry-go-round and I think that is a fantastic illustration of exactly where this is gone, it’s quite extraordinary. ‘It’s not a magic bullet but it’s a fantastic step and I think it will really make a difference. I don’t know where we will end up down the line but I would like this to act as a kite mark for music videos. This is not a move about censorship, the videos will all still be there, but I think artists and record companies need to take seriously that if they are targeting young fans they have got to do it responsibly.’ On the lack of enforcement of the ratings, she said: ‘You can’t go into a shop and buy a 15 rated film without ID and we need to see about extending those protections online.’ Dizzee Rascal’s video was given the highest rating because of ‘strong bloody violence, gore, very strong language’. The three and a half minute clip contains extreme violence .
Videos from artists including Sam Smith could be given age ratings online .
British certification chiefs say one in five videos deemed unfit for under 12 .
YouTube and Vevo pilot the scheme but kids could find videos elsewhere .
Only videos released by UK labels count so Miley and Rihanna not covered .
Online music videos are to be given age ratings in a bid to protect children from explicit images and lyrics. Top artists including Sam Smith, George Ezra and Joss Stone could see their music videos handed 12, 15 or 18 certifications under the government-backed pilot scheme. The British Board of Film Certification, which is running the initiative, has estimated that one in five videos released will be deemed unfit for those under 12. Video sharing sites YouTube and Vevo have signed up to the scheme and pledged to include the warnings on clips uploaded to their sites. Vevo puts the rating in the top corner of the video, while YouTube includes it in the information beneath . However some of the world’s raunchiest performers, such as Miley Cyrus and Rihanna, are not covered by the scheme and there are no measures in place to enforce the guidelines . Rapper Dizzee Rascal has already seen his video ‘Couple of Stacks’ rated 18 under the initiative. Ellie Goulding’s ‘Love Me Like You Do’, recorded for the film Fifty Shades of Grey, was handed a 15 warning and Kasabian’s ‘Stevie’ was rated 12. But even with these ratings in place, there is nothing to stop younger music fans stumbling across the inappropriate clips which often include sexual imagery, violence and obscene language. Only videos released by the British arms of Sony Music UK, Universal Music UK and Warner Music UK are covered by the scheme and the companies are free to choose which videos they want to submit for certification. This means videos from artists such as Miley Cyrus, Nicky Minaj and Rihanna, who are not signed to those labels and are known for their raunchy videos, will not be included in the ratings system. Video sharing sites YouTube and Vevo have signed up to the scheme and pledged to include the warnings on clips uploaded to their sites. Vevo puts the rating in the top corner of the video, while YouTube includes it in the information beneath. However, there are no checks to make sure the person watching is of the correct age. YouTube is the world’s most popular video sharing platform, with one billion worldwide users. It hosts videos for the vast majority of musicians. Some of the world’s raunchiest performers, such as Miley Cyrus and Rihanna, are not covered by the scheme and there are no measures in place to enforce the guidelines . A spokesman for Vevo said: ‘There is no signing in as such or filters – although this is a next step that may be added in time. At the moment this is about giving parents and users the information they need to make a more informed viewing choice and decision. To be effective it requires that parents also take an active interest in what their children are watching.’ Campaigners said last night that the latest move is a ‘fantastic step’ but called for stricter enforcement and for all music videos to carry the ‘kite mark’ of an official age rating to help parents protect their children. The scheme has been running since October last year and has so far seen 84 videos rated, with 27 given a 12 classification, 39 a 15 and one a 18. The BBFC has estimated that one in five videos released will be deemed unsuitable for children under the age of 12. Top artists including Sam Smith, George Ezra and Joss Stone could see their music videos handed 12, 15 or 18 certifications under the government-backed pilot scheme. Dizzee Rascal’s video was given the highest rating because of ‘strong bloody violence, gore, very strong language’. The three and a half minute clip contains extreme violence with the rapper ripping the heart out of a stripping woman, brandishing a knife while covered in blood and decapitating a woman whose body then stumbles around the room. He also holds a family hostage and serves a cake with severed fingers instead of candles. He is shown pulling out a person’s eyeball, slitting one woman’s throat and cutting another’s head in half. Vivienne Pattison, from campaign group Media Watch-UK, said: ‘When parents are surveyed, the two areas that came up as being particularly problematic were soap operas and music videos, those are the two areas that come up again and again as the issue. One in five, that’s a huge number of videos. 'What happens is one video pushes the boundaries and the next artists is under pressure to do the same in order to get people talking about it. It becomes a great merry-go-round and I think that is a fantastic illustration of exactly where this is gone, it’s quite extraordinary. ‘It’s not a magic bullet but it’s a fantastic step and I think it will really make a difference. I don’t know where we will end up down the line but I would like this to act as a kite mark for music videos. This is not a move about censorship, the videos will all still be there, but I think artists and record companies need to take seriously that if they are targeting young fans they have got to do it responsibly.’ On the lack of enforcement of the ratings, she said: ‘You can’t go into a shop and buy a 15 rated film without ID and we need to see about extending those protections online.’ Dizzee Rascal’s video was given the highest rating because of ‘strong bloody violence, gore, very strong language’. The three and a half minute clip contains extreme violence .
Online music videos are to be given age ratings in and lyrics. Top artists including Sam Smith, released will be deemed unfit for those under 12. Video sharing sites YouTube and Vevo have signed language. Only videos released by the British videos from artists such as Miley Cyrus, Nicky Cyrus and Rihanna, are not covered by the scheme has estimated that one in five videos released