When flipping through the channels on my television I am constantly coming across programs I would never want my children to see.  At the same time, I am constantly seeing programs that I would love for my children to see.  The question is,  “How could I leave them alone to watch the good shows without worrying they will turn to the bad ones?”  Thanks to advances in technology, DirecTV now has the answer to that question, and parents everywhere are rejoicing.

Parental Controls=Peace Of Mind

Satellite Television provider, DirecTV, offers a free service to every one of its 15 million customers.  It is called Parental Controls and parents everywhere are breathing a sigh of relief because of it.  Through this Parental Controls feature, you can take complete control over what your child can watch and leave them unsupervised while you take care of all the daily tasks that are constantly calling.  Using it easy.  By selecting a PIN (Personal Identification Number), you can lock out shows or movies according to the rating they are given.  Every show and movie is now required to have a rating (just like movies) in order to help parents know what is appropriate for their kids to watch.  This feature also allows you to lock out entire channels that you may feel has content or messages your child should not be exposed to.  Don’t worry, though.  These shows and channels are not locked up forever so no one can see them.  In order to watch them, you only need to punch in the PIN number.  The chosen PIN number is known only by the parents and the other family members they choose to share it with.

Other Features Of Parental Controls

Blocking shows, movies, and channels is not the only function this feature offers.  You can also use it to set limited viewing times.  Once the viewing time period is up, the PIN is required to continue watching.  This keeps kids from spending all of their time in front of the television when there may be homework or chores that need to be done.  Besides setting limited viewing times, you can also set a spending limit on Pay-Per-View purchases. The worry of many parents is that the monthly bill will arrive with hundreds of dollars in unauthorized purchases of Pay-Per-View Content.  Thanks to Direct TV that is no longer a concern.  Don’t forget that the lock placed on programs according to their rating extends to the Adult Entertainment available on Pay-Per-View.

Easy-To-Understand Instructions

If you thought the Parental Controls feature would be difficult to set up, then you are wrong.  There are easy-to-understand on-screen directions that take you through the entire process.  Even if you did have problems, Direct TV offers other ways to help.  Tune into Channel 201 and learn how to set it up.  If that doesn’t work for you, then go to directv.com and check out the Video Lounge which offers streaming video that gives an example of the entire process.  Never forget that you also can call Direct TV customer service at any time of the day to get help with this or any other question you may have.