What's new and challenging here is that when a person simply posts a video they made on YouTube, that's freedom of expression. If I want to post videos of me unboxing things, there's nothing morally or legally wrong with that.
The grey zone is the money being traded between toy makers and video makers. As soon as money is exchanged, that should logically be considered sponsorship and be subjected to advertising laws.
Just because it's on YouTube doesn't change that a company is paying money to an entertainer to promote their products to children. There are already laws in place about this. It's only a matter of time before prosecutors get involved.
Of course, the toy companies know this and have factored in the legal risks into their calculations. YouTube will be able to skirt the issue because they're just a platform for other people's stuff, and they're not being paid for these sponsorships. The real risk is being taken by the content producers, who almost certainly don't realize how liable they may find themselves to be.
This strikes me as the obvious solution and really not all that gray. Kid posts video on Youtube? That's free speech. Kid posts video on Youtube and company pays them? That's now an ad, and can/should be regulated.
Throwing a wrench into all of this somewhat is Citizen's United saying money is speech... but that's a stupid ruling so let's interpret it as narrowly as possible.
For example, you can have an ad that happens to show a toy being played with (I think). You can't have an ad that tells kids to ask their mom and dad to buy it right away.
There's a lot of nuance in between, but I've never bothered to master it because as a matter of principle I refused to be involved in any marketing aimed at kids. Life's too short to feel that kind of guilt.
There are. I do solve rubiks cubes as a hobby, so when I look for a new puzzle, I watch unboxing videos of those on youtube. Its basically just a short review with some cardboard discarding at the beginning
https://www.bbc.com/news/technology-36702905
https://news.slashdot.org/story/19/01/04/2158259/youtubes-bi...
https://www.wired.co.uk/article/youtubers-charged-promoting-...
Or are unboxers armed with scissors, Stanley knives and wire cutters?
Nah, they are making the unboxing more elaborate.
So elaborate would be fine, so long as I don't need a tool kit.
