Google to introduce Content Ratings to Android Market

0.0By Nigel Chiwaya November 24, 2010 04:11 PM

Htcpedia news:

In a post on Android's Developer Blog, Eric Chu announced today that Google will be adding content ratings to apps in the Android Market. Starting next week, developers submitting new or updated apps will be required to include ratings for their apps. Developers of existing apps will have to add a rating to their apps over the next several weeks.

There will be four levels of content ratings: All, Pre-Teen, Teen and Mature. Google has even given developers guidelines for ratings their apps. For instance: apps that reference drugs, alcohol or tobacco should be rated Teen or above. Apps that ask for location data should be rated Pre-Teen or above, and apps that include graphic voice should be rated Mature. Once the ratings go up on the Market, any app that doesn't include a rating will be treated as "Mature."

Obviously as Android grows in popularity more and more Android phones will find their way into the hands of children. This is clearly a way to keep the wrong apps away from kids and is probably the first step toward instituting full parental controls into Google's OS. However, we're curious as to what sort of policing option Google will bake into Android if, say a developer gives what is really a mature app an "All" rating. Only time will tell.

Source: Android Developer Blog via Android Central

Tags: content ratings android apps android market google Android

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