In a move aimed at addressing concerns over content classification, Meta has agreed to limit how it uses the PG-13 film rating in describing its teen account features. The decision follows a dispute with a film industry body over the use of the rating terminology.
The issue began in October when Meta announced that its platform would restrict content visibility for users under 18 using filters inspired by the PG-13 classification. However, the film association later issued a cease-and-desist notice, stating that the use of the label could confuse parents and infringe on its trademark.
The latest agreement resolves the dispute. As part of the deal, Meta will “substantially reduce” references to “PG-13” and will include a disclaimer clarifying that the film association is not involved in its rating system.
“While we welcome efforts to protect kids from content that may not be appropriate for them, this agreement helps ensure that parents do not conflate the two systems, which operate in very different contexts,” said Charles Rivkin, chairman and CEO of the association.
Meta clarified that its intent was to make content policies easier for parents to understand. “By taking inspiration from a framework families know, our goal was to help parents better understand our teen content policies. We rigorously reviewed those policies against 13+ movie ratings criteria and parent feedback, updated them, and applied them to Teen Accounts by default,” a Meta spokesperson said.
“While that’s not changing, we’ve taken the association’s feedback on how we talk about that work.”
The film rating system, which is voluntary, evaluates movies based on their suitability for children. A PG-13 rating indicates that parental guidance is advised for viewers under 13.
The association had argued that Meta’s system was misleading and did not follow the same curated and consensus-based process used in film ratings.
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