Social Media Feed Opt-Out in Australia: What Creators Need to Know

The algorithm giveth. The algorithm also buries your post under twelve dance clips and a suspiciously emotional air-fryer review.

Australia now wants social platforms to let people switch it off. Nice for users. Potentially messy for creators who've built their entire distribution strategy around being recommended to strangers.

The switch

On September 8, Australia's government released draft legislation requiring social platforms to ask new and existing users over 16 which default feed they want: personalized recommendations, or posts from accounts they deliberately follow.

The choice would need to stick. That matters because Instagram already has a chronological Following feed, but most Australians have to find it through a menu - and it resets after closing the app. The government's proposal¹ is meant to make opting out obvious rather than a little platform Easter egg.

It's not law yet. Consultation is underway, with legislation expected in Parliament this year. Platforms ignoring the wider Digital Duty of Care could face penalties up to A$109.2 million.

And Australia isn't bluffing for attention. Its under-16 account restrictions took effect on December 10, 2025. Platforms reported removing or restricting roughly 4.7 million accounts within days.

The reach problem

Instagram boss Adam Mosseri pushed back without directly attacking the bill. His argument: chronological feeds get crowded by brands and publishers, people use them less, and the total pool of reach shrinks.

Translation for creators? Recommendation feeds aren't merely a viewing feature. They're the discovery engine. Reels can reach people who've never heard of you; a Following feed mostly serves the audience you already earned.

Still, the current setup isn't exactly sacred. Ireland's media regulator opened investigations into Meta² in May over concerns that Facebook and Instagram may make non-profiled feeds unnecessarily difficult to select. European users already have that right under the Digital Services Act. TikTok also offers chronological Following and Friends feeds there.

If more Australians choose Following, creators with loyal audiences could gain consistency. Creators depending on random viral distribution could feel the floor move. Both things can be true. Annoying, I know.

Build for both

First, make following you worth the tap. Run recurring formats, publish on recognizable days and give viewers a reason to expect the next post. Familiarity beats another desperate "follow for part two."

Second, watch your Australian reach separately. Compare follower versus non-follower impressions before any law takes effect. Without a baseline, every dip becomes an algorithm conspiracy.

Finally, move your best people somewhere you can contact them: email, membership or a community you control. Keep using recommendations for discovery. Just don't mistake discovery for ownership.