Page 186 - A Study on the Role of UGC Platforms in Copyright Law：An Intermediary-oriented Approach

A Study on the Role of UGC Platforms in Copyright Law: Chapter 6 UGC Platforms’ Entitlement to UGCs
An Intermediary-oriented Approach

125
under 16. UGC platforms obey the privacy protection requirement by restricting ToU/ToS
offerees to children over 13 (US) or 16 (EU).
Nevertheless, the validity of the contracts signed by users between 13 to 18 (US) or 16
to 18 (EU) has remained controversial. Different jurisdictions have different regulations on
contracts entered into with minors, namely offerees under the age of 18. Under common law
126
systems, a contract with a minor is avoidable. The minor can affirm or ratify the contract
when he or she reaches the age of majority, which would make it contractually binding on
127
her/him. If a minor wants to exit the contract, she/he should express the intention to void it
within a certain period of time after reaching the age of majority; otherwise, the contract will
be deemed ratified and cannot be voided. However, if it is a contract for the necessaries of
128
life, such as the purchase of food, drink, clothing, lodging or medicine, a child should obey
129
the contract.
Necessaries are things that are ‘positively essential to the minor’s personal subsistence
or support’ and are ‘not merely ornamental, or are used as matters of comfort or convenience
only’. The scope of necessaries has changed over time. For example, legal and medical
130
services are now held as necessaries of life but were not considered as such decades ago.
The value of the subject matter can be a criterion for determining whether it belongs in the
necessaries category. For example, ‘engagement and wedding rings, regimental uniforms,
presents for a fiancée, a racing bicycle…, the hire of horses...and the hire of a car to fetch
luggage from a station six miles away’ have all been regarded as necessaries. Conversely,
131
‘fancy waistcoats, expensive dinners..., a large quantity of tobacco...and a second hand sports
132
car’ have been held not to be necessaries.
Using a UGC platform service should also be categorised as a necessity of life for minors
over 13, not only owing to the marginal price (the royalties for a nonexclusive licence to use
UGCs) but also because UGC creation has become increasingly popular among teenagers.
As Google statistics show, 63.5% of teenagers watch YouTube daily, 49% have uploaded
133
one video to YouTube and 5% have uploaded more than 26 videos. The purpose of
restricting minors from entering into contracts is to protect them from misunderstanding the

125 The General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) (EU) 2016/679 ("GDPR"), art 8. GDPR allows member states to process
personal data of a child between 13 and 16 upon consent or authorization by the child’s the parent or guardian.
126 Beale (n 55), Part 3, Chapter 9, Section 2(a).
127 Ibid.
128 Ibid, Part 3, Chapter 9, Section 2(c).
129 Ibid, Part 3, Chapter 9, Section 2(b)(i), 9-010.
130 Ibid, Part 3, Chapter 9, Section 2(b)(i), 9-011.
131 Ibid, Part 3, Chapter 9, Section 2(b)(i), 9-019.
132 Ibid.
133 Eric Thiegs, ‘1 Out of 2 Teens Have Uploaded a Video to YouTube Reports Teen Writing Community StageofLife.com via
Its Monthly Writing Contest and Student Poll’ (CISION, 28 May 2018) <https://www.prweb.com/releases/teen-statistics/
youtube/prweb12134432.htm> accessed 19 May 2019.

• 172 •