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Google is bringing a set of new kids-focused features such as parent-controlled watchlists and AI-powered suggestions to Google TV, the latest in a series of efforts from the Android-maker as it attempts to broaden the offerings of its TV operating system for family consumption.
The company said it is adding these features to the kids’ profiles to improve content recommendation and exploration. Parents can directly push titles to the “must watch” lists for kids from their profiles (by just tapping the watchlist button on the titles they came across and pressing add), the company explained in a blog post.
The company is also introducing AI-powered recommendations for kids — because Google loves AI. Children can now look at popular shows and movies on their Google TV home screen based on installed apps and parent-defined ratings levels. If they don’t like a title that has been recommended to them and don’t wish to see it again, they can press and hold the select button and then tap “hide” to remove the suggestion from the list.
The new additions are Google’s ongoing efforts to make its services more appropriate for kids. Google introduced supervised accounts for YouTube last year that helps children migrate from YouTube Kids to the main YouTube app in a safe manner.
Parents can additionally create restrictions on content exploration, commenting, or video creation through this feature. It allows guardians to define three levels of access: “Explore” for content suitable for viewers 9 and above; “Explore more” for viewers 13 and above; and “Most of YouTube” to enable access to all videos sans the age-restricted content.
The search giant said it is also bringing this supervised experience to Google TV so kids can access the main YouTube app with appropriate content restrictions. Notably, when parents set up these supervised accounts, they provide consent for the collection and use of data collection from kids’ profiles for COPPA compliance — a US privacy law that defines limits for websites providing services to children.
The company first introduced kids’ profiles on Google TV last year which allows parents to set limits on app access and screen time.
Google said these features are rolling out starting today on the Chromecast with Google TV (both 4K and HD variants) and other Google TV devices from manufacturers like Hisense and Philips, Sony and TCL.
