Key Issues

Television Parental Controls

Managing Television Content

The Texas cable industry continues to build on its long standing commitment to address parents' concerns about what they and their children see on television.

Since parents are best suited to make content decisions about the appropriateness of TV programs for their household, the industry has dedicated itself to providing customers with easy-to-use tools that both provide information about TV content and allow unwanted programs or channels to be blocked.

A TV ratings system, called TV Parental Guidelines, gives parents more information about the particular content and age-appropriateness of TV programs. The ratings can be used in conjunction with the V-Chip, a device available in most TV sets that gives parents the ability to block out programs they do not want their children to see. Cable companies also provide parental controls through the digital set-top boxes that enable parents to easily block entire channels or specific programs based on time of day, channel and rating.

In addition to the most advanced parental control technology, the cable industry has committed to donate $300 million of airtime for public service announcements educating consumers about parental control and TV ratings.