The Federal Communications Commission this week lauded CTIA’s efforts to control mobile adult content and urged the association to step up its efforts in keeping inappropriate material out of the hands of children.
In a letter to Steve Largent, CTIA president, FCC Wireless Telecommunications Bureau Chief John Muleta praised the group’s plan to create a wireless content ratings system, suggesting CTIA also examine its carrier code of conduct to promote self regulation.
“With adult content available from a myriad of sources, now more than ever it is important for carriers, content providers, and parents to know what is being done by (the) industry to prevent access to adult content by minors, as well as what they can do to protect their children,” Muleta wrote. “Through responsible action on the part of wireless carriers and content providers, this important social goal can be achieved without government intervention and without interference to the provision of content to adults.”
An FCC spokeswoman confirmed Muleta’s letter was in response to a Jan. 31 story in RCR Wireless News chronicling CTIA’s work to create a ratings system. The FCC encouraged the industry association to inform parents about how to block adult content and services on children’s handsets and to study efforts to control content in markets, including the United Kingdom, Australia and Israel.
“This issue is not confined to our borders,” Muleta wrote, “and we should be mindful that other parts of the international telecommunications industry are facing similar circumstances.”
The letter will be posted on the bureau’s Web site, the spokeswoman said.
