“The Supreme Court cleared the way on Monday for Texas to enforce a new state law that requires Apple and Google to verify the age of app store users as part of an effort to give parents more control over the content their children download,” the New York Times reports.
“The court’s brief order came in response to an emergency request from the tech companies and a group of students, who had told the justices that the law violated their free speech rights and asked that it be blocked.”
Reuters: Supreme Court won’t block Texas app store age verification law.
Note…
The order is a temporary place holder that sets the rules while litigation continues in the lower courts over the constitutionality of the Texas law. The justices did not include their reasons, which is typical when they issue emergency orders, and there were no noted dissents.
Texas is one of 20 states that has passed or considered similar age-verification laws for electronic devices, placing new burdens on tech giants to restrict children’s access to apps amid a rising backlash against social media and its impact on young people….
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Under the Texas law, app store companies must create a way for users younger than 18 to obtain parental consent to download apps or make purchases within apps.
Ken Paxton, the Texas attorney general, told the court in a filing that the law protected the rights of parents to make decisions about their “children’s upbringing in the modern world.”
The law, his office said, applies regardless of content, requiring parental consent before minors can buy any product from app stores — from calculators and measuring tools to social media and e-books….
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