Google TV is adding accounts for kids this month
Google announced today, Monday, that it has taken its first step towards introducing family features on Google TV, by offering accounts to children.
From Google Kids Space via select Android tablets to teacher-approved apps on Google Play, Google has made a lot of progress in helping children explore the Internet.
Creating an account for each of your children is easy, as you can add a child's existing Google account or create a new account with only name and age.
Parents will be able to choose which apps to add to their children's accounts, and the accounts include rows with recommendations of child-friendly apps, so your kids can easily find what they're watching.
With Google Play Family Library, you can share access to purchased TV shows and movies across other devices.
Kids' accounts on Google TV are designed with younger viewers in mind, and feature bright colors and fun illustrations.
The background can be customized to a child-friendly theme, and in the coming weeks Google is providing avatars so that children can choose a picture for the account based on their interests.
And with on-screen parental controls, parents can manage kids' screen time by setting daily viewing limits and bedtime schedule.
And when it's time to turn off the TV, kids are greeted with three warning signs for a countdown timer before the end time screen and watch time run out, and you'll always have the option to add some extra extra time.
To prevent children from switching to your account, you can turn on account locking so that you can make changes using only the PIN.
You can also manage some content controls on Google TV directly from the Family Link app to help ensure that your child's TV time complies with the digital ground rules you set for your family across devices, such as Android phones or Chromebooks.
You can also see how much time children spend on their favorite apps, block and unblock apps, control app activity, and more from your phone.
Support for child accounts is rolling out across Google TV through Chromecast with Google TV and other Google TV devices in the US starting this month, and globally over the next few months.