The ministry therefore recommends that the series should only be made available to young people aged 16 and over – from this age onwards, Netflix also recommends the series, and the responsible association for multimedia voluntary self-regulation (FSM) has also confirmed this age restriction.
Netflix users have a duty
“In my opinion, Netflix has complied with the legal regulations,” said Marc Jan Eumann, chairman of the commission for the protection of minors in the media, on Deutschlandfunk.
Squid Game is about a life-and-death competition, brutally staged. Nevertheless, one does not have to generally fear for the emotional well-being of young viewers, says media educator Björn Friedrich.
“You have carried out an age rating for the offer, and Netflix users can use the settings to ensure precisely: who in my household can actually use this content?”
In order to protect children from potentially harmful content, the streaming platforms offer various types of parental controls – unlike linear television, where content for children over the age of 16 is not broadcast until late in the evening, this type of security is provided by streaming providers such as Netflix or Amazon Prime Video does not.
Platforms offer various parental controls
This is where these providers also differ from public media libraries, where potentially youth-endangering content is only offered late at night – unless this function is deactivated via age verification.
With green you can walk, with red you have to stand. This is how a traditional Korean children’s game works. The Netflix series Squid Game made it famous all over the world. Also as a mirror of Korean society.
Instead, the US providers have introduced their own youth protection systems, which have been officially recognized by the Association for Voluntary Self-Control Multimedia (FSM) and classified as suitable within the meaning of the State Treaty on Youth Media Protection.
Information portals for legal guardians
This means that – unlike linear television – users of the streaming service are responsible for protecting their children from content that is harmful to minors.
“Parents have to decide: what do I want and what my children use? Just like in other areas of life, ”demands Eumann. The chairman of the commission for the protection of minors in the media does not consider a legal regulation to be practicable.
