TikTok, one of the most popular short video social media platforms, has announced that users under the age of 18 will have a one-hour screen time limit by default. This is one of the most aggressive moves by the Chinese giant in an effort to reduce criticism about teens’ endlessly scrolling the platform’s feed.
When the 60-minute or one-hour time limit is reached, then the user will be prompted to enter a passcode on the device to continue scrolling through the videos on the platform. This will create a sort of barrier to endless scrolling and bolster the digital wellbeing of young users.
Cormac Keenan, TikTok’s head of trust and safety, said that the company consulted researchers and experts from the Digital Wellness Lab at Boston Children’s Hospital to decide the time limits to set for teen users. He added, “While there’s no collectively-endorsed position on how much screen time is ‘too much’, or even the impact of screen time more broadly, we recognize that teens typically require extra support as they start to explore the online world independently.”
While the one-hour screen time limit feature will be enabled by default in TikTok’s mobile application, the user will be able to disable this new feature from the app’s settings. Nonetheless, it’s a good move from the company to enable the feature by default and have the user take action to disable the feature.
TikTok has also updated the Family Pairing feature, which allows parent or guardian to link their TikTok account to and set controls. They can also filter videos with words or hashtags, set a custom daily screen time limit, and set a custom schedule to mute TikTok notifications.
The development comes at a time when TikTok, as well as other social media platforms, have been facing scrutiny over the impact of prolonged usage of such platforms, especially on young users. Further, TikTok’s parent company is also facing pressure from the US government and others over concerns about security because of the company’s ties in China.
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