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Google Unveils New Tools on its App With Parental Control

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Alphabet Inc.’s (GOOGL - Free Report) division, Google recently unveiled new tools on its free Family Link app, to keep a check on mobile usage of teenagers by allowing them to turn off their phones.

The company has extended the compatibility of the Family Link app to Chromebooks.

These tools will definitely make vigilance stricter and help parents curb smartphone addiction as well as limit screen time to some extent for teenagers.

Coming to price performance, Alphabet’s shares have returned 25.8% in a year’s time against the industry’s loss of 3.3%.

 

 

All About the New Tool

Launched in March 2017, Google Family Link app provides parents reports on their child's phone usage on a weekly basis. Parents can view their kids’ activity, manage and recommend their apps, as well as set screen time limits. Also, itallows parents to block certain apps and lock their child's device remotely.

Initially, this app was launched for kids under 13 years old but now the age bar has been extended to teenagers.

The new tools allow parents to know the time spent by their kids on a smartphone and the content they access to. They can switch off their phones remotely. However, it gives a teenager the liberty to turn off their parents’ supervision, with intimation to them that they are barred to access their phone usage.

In addition, parents can lock their kids’ account on the app using Google Assistant.

Bottom Line

Google’s user base continues to grow at a significant pace, driven by new features and tools that improve engagement. The launch of new parent-controlled tool will definitely give parents more reasons to stay on the Family app for monitoring their child’s activity. The time spent per user on its Family Link app is therefore expected to increase.

Also, Google’s intention to foray into the teenager demography is prudent in our view as it will help the company expand its user base. An uptick in user base will help it draw more advertisers and bring in more advertising dollars.

Also, Google’s other platforms like Android, Chrome and Daydream continue to help it in drawing more users, and selling more ads, thus expanding top-line growth.

Alphabet Inc. Price and Consensus

 

Alphabet Inc. Price and Consensus | Alphabet Inc. Quote

Zacks Rank and Stocks to Consider

Currently, Alphabet carries a Zacks Rank #3 (Hold). Some better-ranked stocks in the same industry are eXp World Holdings, Inc. (EXPI - Free Report) , Infineon Technologies AG (IFNNY - Free Report) and Rambus Inc. (RMBS - Free Report) , each carrying a Zacks Rank #2 (Buy). You can see the complete list of today’s Zacks #1 Rank (Strong Buy) stocks here.

Long-term earnings growth for eXp World Holdings, Infineon Technologies and Rambus is currently projected to be 10%, 7.5% and 10%, respectively.

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