Netflix Unveils New Parental Controls While Millions of Families Self-Quarantine

While millions of families are currently under self-isolation amidst the coronavirus pandemic, [...]

While millions of families are currently under self-isolation amidst the coronavirus pandemic, many are turning towards streaming services in order to pass the time. Now, Netflix has released new details about their service that may just make things easier for those with children who want to watch kid-friendly programs. On Tuesday, Netflix revealed that there would be "more choice and more control" for families who wish to use their service.

According to the streaming giant, they've implemented updates so that parents can have better control over what their families can watch. One of the biggest changes to the service is that parents can now use a PIN to protect individual profiles in order to prevent kids from using them. Additionally, parents can now filter out titles that they have deemed inappropriate for their children. Netflix has built these filters using country ratings, which they have said makes the move more intuitive. Not only are parents able to filter out material based on these aforementioned ratings, but they can also remove individual series or films by title. If they do choose to do this, the titles will not show up anywhere in that specific profile.

Netflix also incorporated a few other changes that will, hopefully, help make editing profiles easier. Parents can now review each individual profile's setting under the "Profile and Parental Controls" tab within the account settings. They can also easily view what their children have been viewing on the service on their individual profiles. Finally, if they do not wish to utilize the auto-play feature on their kids' programming, they can turn the feature off.

"Choice and control have always been important for our members, especially parents. We hope that these additional controls will help parents make the right choices for their families," Michelle Parsons, the Kids Product Manager for Netflix, said in the company's press release about these changes.

Of course, these aren't the only changes that Netflix has implemented amidst this unprecedented health pandemic. In mid-March, the streaming service launched a new feature, Netflix Party, that enables users to watch programs with their friends from the comfort of their homes. The service allows viewers to feel as though they are watching their programs alongside their friends, and it is definitely a welcome service as many Americans are currently self-quarantining at home. If you wish to use Netflix Party, you can download an extension on Google Chrome.

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