With the popularity of short video apps surging, a lot of issues have also started surfacing online. In the latest move to curb the issue of addiction among users, China’s watchdog will now require all major short video platforms in China to roll out “anti-addiction” parental controls by the end of May.
According to the reports, the Cyberspace Administration of China (CAC) has been testing the system on popular short video apps such as Bytedance’s Douyin, Huoshan Short Video, and Tencent-backed Kuaishou. It allows parents to turn on a “youth mode” feature that restricts minors to 40 minutes of usage per day and disables activities such as gift-giving or account top-up.
The development comes as China-based regulators are becoming increasingly vigilant about the amount of screen time minors are exposed to, a topic that is bearing increasing scrutiny across the globe.
A report from Chinese state media says that the children who stay behind in rural areas while their parents work in big cities were especially obsessed with online entertainment. Apps in China can also collect personal information from minors.
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In India, Madras High Court banned the TikTok app and on Monday, the Supreme Court refused to put a stay order on the ban. Now, the government of India has asked Google and Apple to take down the popular short-video mobile application TikTok from their app stores. Short video apps have come under fire not only in India but also in the US, UK, Hong Kong, and Indonesia for content that is often dangerous or inappropriate for children.
(Source)
