Mobile firms aim to limit children’s access to content

Six mobile phone operators may tighten a set of voluntary measures to protect young people from inappropriate online material.

The companies – Orange, O2, T-Mobile, 3, Virgin Mobile and Vodafone – are considering the changes in a review of a code of practice overseen by the Independent Mobile Classification Body, which is funded by the industry.

Under the code agreed in 2004, the companies prevent users aged 17 and under from accessing material they have classified as ‘18’. However, in a paper now out for consultation until 7 November they suggest going further, proposing a system that would classify some material as suitable for teenagers but unsuitable for pre-teens.

The UK code of practice for the self-regulation of new forms of mobile content broke new ground because it allowed parents to place bars on inappropriate material on their children’s mobile devices. However, the companies now feel it should be revised to keep pace with technological advances and parents’ demands.