In an effort to update its “Parental Advisory” labeling program, the Recording Industry Association of America is asking online music companies to implement “effective parental-control filters to provide parents more information and control over what their children can download.” The trade group is providing companies with guidelines for how best to label digital music product in the same vein as the “Parental Advisory” stickers on physical CDs, Billboard Bulletin reports.
RIAA chairman/CEO Mitch Bainwol announced the move at a public Federal Trade Commission (FTC) workshop on media violence and children yesterday (Oct. 29) in Washington, D.C.
Bainwol said the RIAA’s guidelines “will reinforce the importance of consistent descriptors across all services” and should “help parents draw a distinction between the pirate peer-to-peer networks and legitimate online music services.”
FTC moderators slung most of their heat about violence at video-game stores and manufacturers, although a recent survey by the commission showed that kids can get their hands on inappropriate material easier at record stores than at movie theaters or game outlets. In fact, the survey found that 83% of 13- to 16-year-olds were able to purchase stickered recordings.
