Abstract:

The rapid development of communication technologies has made digital broadcasting platforms a popular choice for many users in recent years. These platforms offer viewers the opportunity to consume content without being bound to a fixed broadcast stream or time, and they also feature content produced for children. The risk of children accessing all of the content on these platforms can lead to some negative consequences, depending on their developmental stage. It is important for parents to be digitally literate in terms of the use of new communication technologies in order to prevent the risks that children may be exposed to in this area. The purpose of this study is to reveal how content is shaped by the platform in terms of child access to content and parental control on digital broadcasting platforms. In order to achieve this, the largest digital broadcasting platforms with the largest subscriber, customer and user base in the world and Turkey have been included in the research universe. The sample group of the study consists of the Netflix, Amazon Prime Video and Disney+ platforms. In the study, the categories and themes that emerge are used to analyze how access to content and parental control are structured on the platforms in line with the content analysis method. According to the findings of the research, it has been observed that all relevant digital broadcasting platforms have features related to parental control, and that the platforms allow parents to create a profile that children can use. Although digital broadcasting platforms have similar features in terms of child access and parental control at certain points, it has been determined that there are some points where they differ.

Keywords: