Vimeo is after YouTube the most popular video platform in the world. Find out what the video portal offers and what risks it poses here.
The video platform is used to upload self-created videos and to watch videos of others. While YouTube ‘s offerings vary widely in quality, Vimeo is known more for high-quality videos and for a benevolent community. The selection of topics is clearly structured, as you can filter at any time by many topics and genres, by the timeliness of the videos, by duration, price and type of license. Detailed search settings make it easy to search for something specific and you won’t get lost amidst the vast selection.
You have to register if you want to put content on the platform yourself. Also to comment, share and like videos or follow channels, a free registration with name and email or via Google account is required.
Because videos on Vimeo are completely ad-free, the portal finances itself through paid subscriptions (between €6 and €70 per month). As always, the more you pay, the more options you have when uploading videos. With a paid subscription, you can put videos on private, among other things.
Most kids and teens are excited about videos, but they’re more likely to be on YouTube, where their influencers hang out. But you can also find some on Vimeo. However, the portal is aimed more at older people: If you filter for the video category “For children”, you only get four search results. Beyond that, however, there is a wide variety of content from around the world that young people find interesting and entertaining.
Due to the huge range of videos on Vimeo, your child may come across content that is not suitable for their age or may even impair their development. This may be the case with scary, violent or offensive content. Although you can set a general parental control filter on Vimeo or filter individually according to categories, it remains open to what extent or how thoroughly videos are checked according to these categories. Moreover, the parental control settings can be easily undone by the child itself with just one click.
Especially if your child produces content themselves and uploads it to Vimeo, care must be taken to ensure that no personal data is made public. Also, the right to one’s own image must not be violated, i.e. all persons appearing must always be asked for permission for publication. Copyright can also pose a risk. Music used etc. should be self-created or freely usable.
The official website of the provider contains so-called “community guidelines“, which stipulate respectful cooperation and point out content that may not be uploaded to the platform. Videos that violate this will be removed. Users can also provide feedback on inappropriate videos and report them. For example, no third-party copyrighted materials are allowed. Pornography, the spread of hatred, and extreme or real violence are also prohibited. However, the exact terms of use are only available in English.
Because of the amount of content, you should explore the platform together first. Set the parental control filter and research together how to report a video should you or your child come across something inappropriate. Also show interest in the videos that your child likes. This way, you can create a safe framework so that when your child is surfing the platform on their own, they will turn to you if something scares or upsets them.
Maybe your child would like to try their hand at producing videos themselves? Support this and accompany your child in this creative process. Talk to your child about the content and topics for their videos. It is also important that you share and inform each other about data protection and copyrights.
Unlike YouTube, videos on Vimeo can be “privately published” and password protected. This way, friends and family can watch your own videos without having to share them with the whole world right away and they might fall into the wrong hands.
