Ofcom has commissioned research to understand people's experiences of using, and attitudes towards safety measures on video-sharing platforms (VSP).
We explored a range of users' perspectives, from parents and carers to users of platforms that host pornographic content. The findings will inform how we regulate VSPs, including our rules on the protection of children and our engagement with notified providers.
We have published this research alongside our first report on video-sharing platforms since becoming the statutory regulator for platforms established in the UK.
Please note that the concerns and measures discussed in these reports go beyond the scope of the harm and measures in VSP legislation. The research includes platforms that are not currently regulated by Ofcom under the VSP regime, but they still provide important context for understanding the VSP landscape. All views expressed in these reports are those of the research participants, not Ofcom.
VSP trackers
This quantitative online survey examines users’ awareness of, and experiences of using the safety measures available on platforms. The research was carried out by Yonder Consulting (Waves 1 and 2) and YouGov (Waves 3, 4, 5 and 6) on behalf of Ofcom, using a sample of UK internet users aged 13+.
We have published data from six waves of the research; the first collected in October 2021, the second in April 2022, the third in January 2023 and the fourth in June 2023, the fifth in February 2024 and the sixth, the most recent, in August 2024.
| Document | Wave | Publication date |
|---|---|---|
| Questionnaire (PDF, 253 KB) | Wave 5 | 28 November 2024 |
| Data Files (SAV, 3,690 KB) | Wave 5 | 28 November 2024 |
| Data Tables (XLSX, 8,417 KB) | Wave 5 | 28 November 2024 |
| Technical Report (PDF, 281 KB) | Wave 5 | 28 November 2024 |
| Data Tables (XLSX, 9,649 KB) | Waves 5 and 6 | 28 November 2024 |
| Questionnaire (PDF, 258 KB) | Wave 6 | 28 November 2024 |
| Data Files (SAV, 6,358 KB) | Wave 6 | 28 November 2024 |
| Data Tables (XLSX, 7,664 KB) | Wave 6 | 28 November 2024 |
| Technical Report (PDF, 245 KB) | Waves 6 | 28 November 2024 |
| Chart Pack (PDF, 881 KB) | Waves 5 and 6 | 28 November 2024 |
| Document | Wave | Publication date |
|---|---|---|
| Chart pack (PDF, 950.5 KB) | Waves 3 and 4 | 28 November 2023 |
| Data tables (XLSX, 5.7 MB) | Waves 3 and 4 | 28 November 2023 |
| Questionnaire (PDF, 249.3 KB) | Wave 3 | 28 November 2023 |
| Data tables (XLSX, 6.3 MB) | Wave 3 | 28 November 2023 |
| Technical report (PDF, 251.7 KB) | Wave 3 | 28 November 2023 |
| Data file (SAV, 1.4 MB) | Wave 3 | 28 November 2023 |
| Questionnaire (PDF, 248.7 KB) | Wave 4 | 28 November 2023 |
| Data tables (XLSX, 6.6 MB) | Wave 4 | 28 November 2023 |
| Technical report (PDF, 194.1 KB) | Wave 4 | 28 November 2023 |
| Data file (SAV, 1.9 MB) | Wave 4 | 28 November 2023 |
| Document | Wave | Date published |
|---|---|---|
| Chart pack (PDF, 1.2 MB) | Waves 1 and 2 | 20 October 2022 |
| Technical report (PDF, 264.4 KB) | Waves 1 and 2 | 20 October 2022 |
| Data tables (XLSX, 3.2 MB) | Waves 1 and 2 | 20 October 2022 |
| Data tables (PDF, 4.3 MB) | Waves 1 and 2 | 20 October 2022 |
| Questionnaire (PDF, 215.0 KB) | Wave 2 | 20 October 2022 |
| Data tables (XLSX, 5.4 MB) | Wave 2 | 20 October 2022 |
| Data tables (PDF, 6.6 MB) | Wave 2 | 20 October 2022 |
| Questionnaire (PDF, 207.9 KB) | Wave 1 | 20 October 2022 |
| Data tables (XLSX, 6.3 MB) | Wave 1 | 20 October 2022 |
| Data tables (PDF, 6.9 MB) | Wave 1 | 20 October 2022 |
This research aimed to understand how parents, guardians or carers with children aged 6-17 engage with the guidance and tools that are designed to keep their children safe. The scope did not extend to age limits on VSPs, or parental/familial engagement with them.
The concerns and measures discussed in this research go beyond the scope of the harms and measures in the VSP legislation, and the research mentions VSPs that are not currently regulated by Ofcom. It nevertheless provides important context for understanding how parents interact with platforms and the protection measures on them.
| Document | Date published |
|---|---|
| Executive summary (PDF, 716.9 KB) | 20 October 2022 |
| Technical report (PDF, 342.5 KB) | 20 October 2022 |
| Questionnaire (PDF, 321.9 KB) | 20 October 2022 |
| Data tables (XLSX, 1.7 MB) | 20 October 2022 |
| Data tables (PDF, 3.3 MB) | 20 October 2022 |
This research explores adult internet users' previous experiences of proving their age online, and their attitudes towards the different ways of doing this. In particular, it looks at users' experiences of accessing pornographic content online.
The research was carried out by Yonder Consulting on behalf of Ofcom, using a mixed-method quantitative and qualitative methodology. It is based on a sample of UK internet users aged 18 or above. We selected participants based on whether or not they had accessed pornographic content online at any point in the past.
| Document | Date published |
|---|---|
| Executive summary (PDF, 335.6 KB) | 20 October 2022 |
| Technical report (PDF, 477.2 KB) | 20 October 2022 |
| Questionnaire (PDF, 198.2 KB) | 20 October 2022 |
| Data tables (XLSX, 2.3 MB) | 20 October 2022 |
| Data tables (PDF, 3.3 MB) | 20 October 2022 |