This page is about a bill. That means that it's not the law yet, but some people want it to be the law. It could change quickly, and some of the information is just a draft.

Social Media (Age-Restricted Users) Bill

Preliminary provisions

5: Meaning of social media platform

You could also call this:

"What is a social media platform?"

Illustration for Social Media (Age-Restricted Users) Bill

This bill is proposing a new law that affects social media platforms. You will hear the term 'social media platform' used in this bill, which refers to online spaces where people interact with each other. The bill says what makes a social media platform, such as allowing users to talk to each other, share things, or post content. When the bill talks about 'online social interaction', it means people sharing things with each other on the internet for social reasons. You might be wondering what counts as a social reason, and the bill says it includes sharing material with others. The bill also says that some things, like advertising, should not be considered when deciding what a social media platform is. The bill also mentions something called an 'exempt platform', which is a platform that does not have to follow the rules. You might be an exempt platform if no one in New Zealand can see the content on your platform. The government can also specify which platforms are exempt in regulations.

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This page was last updated on 27 October 2025

View the original legislation for this page at https://legislation.govt.nz/act/public/1986/0120/latest/link.aspx?id=LMS1536454.

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4: Interpretation, or

"What special words mean in this law"

6: Act binds the Crown, or

"The law applies to the government too"

Part 1Preliminary provisions

5Meaning of social media platform

For the purposes of this Act, social media platform means:
an electronic platform that satisfies the following conditions:
1. the sole or primary purpose of the platform is to enable online social interactions between 2 or more end-users:
2. the platform allows end-users to link to, or interact with, some or all of the other end-users:
3. the platform allows end-users to post material on the platform; or
an electronic platform specified in regulations.

For the purposes of subparagraph (1)(a)(i), online social interaction includes online social interactions that enables end-users to share material for social purposes.
In determining whether the condition set out in subparagraph (1)(a)(i) is satisfied, disregard the following purposes:
the provision of advertising material on the service:
the generation of revenue from the provision of advertising material on the platform.

For the purposes of this section, a platform is an exempt platform if:
none of the material on the platform is accessible to, or delivered to, one or more end-users in New Zealand; or
the platform is specified in regulations.