As soon as a mobile phone user searches for pornographic images or text, a Kijkwijzer icon pops up with a recommended age restriction.  For the moment Kijkwijzer only applies to sexually explicit content, but there are plans to extend the application to other types of sensitive material.

Netherlands Institute for the Classification of Audiovisual Media (NICAM) is the organisation behind Kijkwijzer. They signed a contract with mobile operators KPN Mobile, Orange, Telfort, T-Mobile and Vodafone.  These five operators introduced the Kijkwijzer system on 1 April. The operators and NICAM see the labelling system as an effective tool to alert the mobile phone user on the nature of the material before they see it.

NICAM’s announcement comes a week after their attendance at a stakeholders meeting organised by Surfopsafe, The Dutch Internet safety awareness node.  The meeting brought together industry, children, parents, teachers, government, SMEs and consumers.