Google to improve YouTube Kids to allow parent control search

PanARMENIAN.Net - After being reported to the FTC twice by parent and child advocacy groups for not being family friendly enough, Google is preparing an update for YouTube Kids that it expects will address the content issues, the Verge reports.

The updated version of YouTube Kids will be outfitted with a more robust set of parental controls which will allow parents to turn off search access and set their own custom passcode for the service.

YouTube Kids has also gained an explainer for parents on how to set up those controls, and Google says the app is gaining Chromecast, Apple TV and smart TV support as well. Google is also asking parents to flag any questionable videos that may get through YouTube's filters. "We always try to make the videos available in the app family-friendly, but no system is perfect," YouTube Kids director of product management Shimrit Ben-Yair said in a blog post.

While it may never be perfect, YouTube Kids is still a far better alternative than trying to self-police the standard version of YouTube for your child. Google says the YouTube Kids app will receive the update in the "coming weeks."