PlayStation Family parental controls app launches on iOS and Android

Sony Interactive Entertainment announced on Wednesday the launch of PlayStation Family, a dedicated parental controls app for iOS and Android that lets parents monitor and manage children’s activity on PlayStation 5 and PlayStation 4 consoles from their phones. The app, which began rolling out globally on app stores this week, centralizes existing console controls and adds new features such as real time notifications, activity reports and remote approval of extra playtime or access to restricted games.

Sony demonstrated the app in a series of videos showing a guided onboarding that walks parents through creating or linking a child account, and a notification system that alerts a parent the moment a child requests additional playtime or attempts to launch a restricted title. From the mobile interface, parents can approve or decline requests instantly, set playtime limits by day of the week, view daily and weekly breakdowns of which games were played and for how long, and configure age appropriate content filters. The app also includes privacy and social controls and spending management tools that let parents add funds to a child’s PlayStation Wallet, view balances and set...