BRAZIL - 2020/09/25: In this photo illustration the TikTok logo seen displayed on a smartphone. (Photo Illustration by Rafael Henrique/SOPA Images/LightRocket via Getty Images)
TikTok is making some changes to help users under the age of 18 “manage their time” on the short-form video app.
Cormac Keenan, TikTok’s Head of Trust and Safety, shared the update via the company’s official Newsroom. 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 striving to improve its “screen time tool with more custom options.” This will include “new default settings for teen accounts, and expanding Family Pairing with more parental controls.”
The company’s first initiative is to “help teens manage their time on TikTok.” In order to do this, every account belonging to a user under 18 will automatically be set to a “60-minute daily screen time limit.”If a user reaches the 60-minute time limit, they will be prompted to “enter a passcode in order to continue watching.”
Keenan further explains that this action requires teenagers to “make an active decision to extend” their time on the app. Additionally, the company believes the initiative will force users to be more intentional with the time they do spend on the app.
The new initiative will also send “every teen account a weekly inbox notification with a recap of their screen time.”
Lastly, the change is expected to take place in the next few weeks.
TikTok is also adding three new features to Family Pairing, a feature they unveiled in 2020, with the hope to “empower 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 schedules, holiday breaks, or family travel.”
Secondly, the update will provide caregivers with insight as to how many times their child opened the TikTok app. As well as a breakdown of the total time that was spent on the app during both the day and night.
Lastly, the third update will feature the option for parents to “set a schedule to mute notifications for their teen.” Currently, users between the ages of 13 and 15 do not receive push notifications after 9 p.m. And users between the ages of 16 and 17 stop receiving push notifications after 10 p.m.
Before closing, Keenan continues to explain what the company hopes will 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 more future adjustments to the app, which are currently underway.
…everyone will soon be able to set their own customized screen time limits for each day of the week and set a schedule to mute notifications. In addition, we’re rolling out a sleep reminder to help people more easily plan when they want to be offline at night. People can set a time, and when it’s reached, a pop-up will remind them it’s time to log off.
Roommates, are you happy to hear about these updates?
