Music video ratings to be used on YouTube and Vevo
UK produced music videos will now be rated on social media.
UK produced music videos will now be rated on YouTube and Vevo.
Following a successful pilot scheme last year music videos which are produced in the UK by major record labels will be subjected to classification, similar to the process films go through.
The scheme was originally launched after music videos from Miley Cyrus, Rihanna and Robin Thicke caused concern surrounding the amount of sexual content they contained.
Sony Music, Universal Music and Warner Music will now submit any music videos to the British Board of Film Classification (BBFC) to they can be rated.
So far 132 videos have been submitted to the BBFC and given 12, 15 and 18 ratings. Dizzee Rascal's 'Couple of Stacks' music video was the only one to receive a rating of 18 and this was because of particularly violent content.
Since October 2014 the Video Recordings Act has meant that all music on physical media, including DVDs has had to be classified, so this new online classification brings online and offline media into line with each other.
This decision has been welcomed by various parties including Baroness Joanna Shields, the Minister for Internet Safety and Security, who said, "We welcome this voluntary step from industry to bring internet services in line with the offline world."
Unlike in the cinema there will be no rating displayed at the start of the video, instead it will be displayed under the video with the further information. Any videos rated 18 will not automatically load in the web browser.