The Texas cable industry is committed to help educate consumers and provide resources designed to ensure that children enjoy a safe and fulfilling Internet experience. As a leading provider of TV and high-speed Internet services, the cable industry shares the concerns of parents about shielding children from TV and online content they deem inappropriate, and keeping children safe when online. Cable’s long-standing commitment to helping parents manage media includes providing a wide range of tools, information and resources to help better shape and manage their family’s TV and Internet use.
In addition to offering the widest diversity of programming that TV viewers of all ages can enjoy, cable also provides customers with the necessary tools and resources to manage content that some deem inappropriate. Since parents are best suited to make decisions about TV content for their household, cable offers easy-to-use technology built into set-top boxes plus an enhanced TV ratings system which enables parents to take charge of their home viewing environment.
In addition to local Internet safety efforts, the National Cable & Telecommunications Association has also launched a comprehensive Internet safety and media literacy initiative, PointSmart. ClickSafe.
PointSmart.ClickSafe. is comprehensive initiative to educate consumers and parents about online safety and the appropriate use of the Internet. PointSmart.ClickSafe includes free parental controls or Internet filters, educational resources about online parental controls and Internet-related media literacy and appropriate cooperation with law enforcement officials to help prevent and prosecute potential criminal activity online.
Key elements of the initiative include: the instructional website PointSmartClickSafe.org, free parental control software, a national online safety summit, partnerships with community organizations and an industry Online Code of Conduct.
Additional information:
- Cable in the Classroom
- Control Your TV
- Media Release: Cable in the Classroom Launches New Online Tools and Resources
- NCTA Blog: Helping to Teach Tomorrow’s Digital Citizens
- NCTA Blog: Message to Teans, “Beware What You Share”
- Study: “Parental Control Perfection? The Impact of the DVR and VOD Boom on the Debate over TV Content Regulation”
- Study: “Parental Controls and Online Child Protection: A Survey of Tools and Methods”
- NCTA’s regulatory filings on this issue