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New Utah company offers solution to make films ‘kid friendly’

Posted at 8:02 PM, Apr 18, 2016
and last updated 2016-04-18 22:02:03-04

PROVO, Utah - For those who find it difficult to watch their favorite movies and television shows because of the constant profanity and nudity, a local Provo-based company provides a solution.

"We offer the ability to filter those things out," said Neal Harmon, CEO of VidAngel.  "We did some research and found that about half of American families would filter profanity and inappropriate content if it were an option."

In the past, companies did provide that option, but all of them were shut down for violating various copyright laws. VidAngel claims to be different.

"It's very simple," Harmon said. "You buy a $20 movie, so then you own it. So, you can legally set your filters. If you don't like it, you can send it back within 24 hours for $19. So, it only costs you one dollar."

Harmon said VidAngel employees go through shows and movies and tag areas with content that customers may want to have removed. However, the company itself, doesn't edit the video in any way, shape or form.

Once customers buy it, they can use VidAngel’s easy-to-use menus, to remove content at each of the tagged areas.

"I know for a fact there's probably a few movies that I would have said no to, but now I let my kids watch," said David Jimenez, a VidAngel customer who started using the service months ago.

The company went public in August, but not before Harmon said he got the blessings from the Film Studios.

So far, the company offers over 2,200 videos and offers it on ROKU, Apple TV, Comcast, Amazon Fire, and streaming through computers, tablets and cellphones. The only areas left to expand are XBox, PlayStation 4 and Samsung Smart TVs.

"Our goal is to have those devices ready by the end of 2016," Harmon said.