By AARON BOYD
Provo parents can rest easy, knowing their children are shielded from what they consider to be inappropriate televised material.
TCI Digital Cable offers a new parental control feature that restricts unsuitable programming in the home.
According to TCI’s news release, the lock-out feature is a part of TCI’s Preview Interactive on-screen guide. The guide is an interactive remote control operated menu that allows users to navigate through programming and services offered by TCI.
The system provides three significant features that allow users to limit viewing options. Users can lock channels to block out specific programming; lock ratings, which blocks access to programs with unsuitable ratings; and lock titles, which prohibits viewing of specific programs by name.
The system is monitored with a four-digit access code. The code activates the restrictions and also allows users to order pay-per-view movies via the interactive menu.
The Englewood, Colo., based cable company expects elevated sales in Utah county.
“It’s just the culture here,” said Mike Oswald, general manager of TCI’s Provo office. “People here have a strong sense of family values and want to be able to pick and choose their programming.”
Though the company has targeted parents and families as primary customers for the service, Oswald said nearly three-fourths of sales came from students in the Provo area.
“They’re using the new technology,” Oswald said. “The younger generation may be more compatible with technological advances, but his technology is intended for everyone.”
The features offered by the TCI Digital Cable system are compelling to many students who want to be selective about their own television viewing.
“Sometimes you flip through the channels and see something you don’t want to see. It would be nice to be able to avoid that,” said Raelene Blocker, a senior from Moab, Utah, majoring in international relations.
TCI demonstrated the features and benefits of the Parental Control System to the Utah Senate in conjunction with the Senate Resolution Encouraging Parents Oversight of Children’s Viewing.
