TikTok is making some changes to help users under the age of 18 “manage their time” on the short-form video app.
TikTok announced that they will limit the device usage time of users under the age of 18 to 60 minutes a day pic.twitter.com/TlJ0slsA0S
– Dexerto (@Dexerto) March 1, 2023
TikTok wants to help teens manage their screen time
Cormac Keenan, TikTok’s Head of Trust and Safety, shared the update through the company’s official website. editorial office. Keenan shared that TikTok believes “digital experiences should bring joy and play a positive role in how people express themselves”. With that in mind, TikTok is trying to improve the “screen time tool with more customization options”. This will include “new default settings for teen accounts and expanded Family Pairing with more parental controls.”
The company’s first initiative is to “help teens manage their time on TikTok”. To do this, any user accounts under the age of 18 will automatically be set to a “daily screen time limit of 60 minutes”. If the user reaches the 60-minute time limit, they will be prompted to “enter password to continue watching.”
Keenan further explains that the action requires teens to “make positive decisions to prolong” their time on the app. Additionally, the company believes this initiative will force users to be more intentional with the time they spend on the app.
The new initiative will also send “every teen account a weekly inbox message with a summary of their device time.”
Ultimately, the change is expected to take place over the next few weeks.
Social media platform TikTok will set a default device time limit of 60 minutes for users under the age of 18, the company has announced. https://t.co/e3C6ShjHuR
– ABC News (@ABC) March 1, 2023
TikTok wants to foster family conversations about digital health
TikTok is also adding three new features to it Family pairing, a feature they announced in 2020, in the hope of “empowering families”. The updates will include custom daily time limits, which can be set by caregivers, and will allow families the ability to “match screen time to school, holiday and school schedules. or family trip”.
Second, the update will give caregivers insight into how many times their child opens the TikTok app. As well as a breakdown of total time spent in apps day and night.
Finally, the third update will have an option for parents to “set a schedule to mute notifications for their kids.” Currently, users between the ages of 13 and 15 do not receive push notifications after 21:00 And users between the ages of 16 and 17 will stop receiving push notifications after 22:00
TikTok has announced that all users under the age of 18 will soon have their accounts default to a daily device usage time limit of one hour. https://t.co/Pi1Ilows9o pic.twitter.com/OKSeLH8Czw
– CNN (@CNN) March 1, 2023
TikTok’s Concern for “Welfare in the Digital World”
Before wrapping up, Keenan went on to explain what the company hopes to come from these updates.
We hope these features will continue to help families establish an ongoing dialogue about safety and well-being in our digital world.
As well as many future tweaks to the app are currently underway.
…everyone will soon be able to set their own custom screen time limits for each day of the week and schedule notifications to mute. Additionally, we’re rolling out bedtime reminders to make it easier for people to plan when they want to go offline at night. People can set a time, and when that time is reached, a pop-up will remind them it’s time to sign out.
Roommates, are you happy to hear about these updates?
