The Google TV platform is gaining parental controls in the US later this month. This will let parents choose which apps children have access to and prevent kid content and recommendations from polluting accounts that grown-ups use.
Introducing Watch Limits and a Bedtime Schedule
To get started, parents can easily add an existing Google account for their child to Google TV. If your kid does not have their own Google account or isn’t old enough to have one, a new profile can be created with just their name and age—no need to use an associated Google account whatsoever.
You can set time limits to restrict how many hours or minutes your kid is permitted to use Google TV on any given day. You can also lock and unlock specific apps, as well as control kids’ app activity, and more. Time limits and additional app restrictions are also available to parents through Google’s Family Link smartphone app.
And thanks to the Google Play Family Library feature, parents can easily share access to TV shows and movies they’ve already purchased to their kid’s profile.
With a custom bedtime schedule, your junior will receive countdown warning signs before a final “Time is up” prompt ends their watch time. “You’ll always have the option to add some extra bonus time when it’s not a school night,” according to Google TV’s Saleh Altayyar.
Rolling Out in the US Starting This Month
According to the official announcement on The Keyword, this feature will arrive in stages—kids profiles on Google TV will first go live for owners of Google’s new Chromecast HDMI dongle before a global expansion “over the next few months.”
Google has been adding new features to the redesigned Google TV software since its arrival a few months ago. Just recently, the platform added the Apple TV app to the mix.
If prior reporting is anything to go by, the Google TV app could soon introduce universal remote functionality. And with a “Basic TV” mode, Google TV will soon let you remove all of the smart features from your smart TV, turning it into a dumb one.
Profile Avatars Are Coming Soon
The new kid profiles on Google TV also provide limited personalization. For example, you can set a background on your kid’s profile by choosing from various pre-made themes.
And to stop your kids from outsmarting you, Google TV makes it easy to create a profile lock to prevent kids from switching to an adult profile (removing a profile lock requires a PIN). Google says more features will be arriving in the coming weeks, including profile avatars.
The company has billed the introduction of kid profiles on Google TV as the first step in delivering a whole host of exciting new family features to the platform.