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Frequently Asked Questions
US Patents #6,166,780, #6,867,818, #6,972,802 and #7,139,031.
British Patent #GB2346029. New Zealand Patent #503410. Australian Patent #742317. Canadian Patent #2303378. Other US and Foreign patents pending.
TVGuardian, TV Guardian, TVG and iActivate are registered trademarks of TVGuardian, LLC © Copyright 2010 TVGuardian, LLC All rights reserved
Q: How does TVGuardian work?
TVGuardian monitors the hidden closed-caption text in the background while you watch TV. Each word is checked against a dictionary of more than 150 offensive words and phrases. When a foul word or phrase is detected, TVG automatically mutes the offensive language. A profanity-free version of the phrase is displayed during the mute.
For example, "Get the F- out of here!" would be muted and "Get out of here!" would be displayed during the mute, or, in the Strict setting, “Move your A#$!” would be muted and “Move your tail!” would be displayed during the mute. Then the text would be erased, the sound would be turned back on, and you would continue watching as usual. You won’t miss a thing – except the offensive language, of course.
TVGuardian has multiple filter settings, include: Strict, Moderate, Tolerant and other settings to fine tune your experience. (Top of page)
Q: Does TVGuardian® filter 'God' and 'Jesus' when used as an expletive?
TVGuardian does have a special setting to filter offensive uses of religious references. When the Religious wordset is turned ON, TVGuardian filters all vain references to deity. When watching a program with a religious theme, you may want to turn this wordset filter to OFF. (Top of page)
Q: Does TVGuardian catch all offensive words and phrases?
TVGuardian is very accurate. It does catch 100% in most movies and TV programs. It may miss a word from time-to-time if an error exists in the hidden closed captioning. On average it has better than a 95% accuracy rate. (Top of page)
Q: Does TVGuardian work differently for TV than it does for DVD and Blu-Ray?
TVGuardian for TV: TVGuardian was primarily designed for TV. TVG Technology works by reading the closed-captions required by law for TV. Because of this, TVGuardian technology will filter virtually every single TV Show and movie when watched on TV; this includes movies watched on Video-on-Demand, Pay-Per-View, HBO, Starz, Encore, Showtime, Cinemax, USA Network, TCM, TNT, you name the channel. . . you name the movie. . . you name the TV Show. . . TVG will filter the language whether you're watching it live or from a recording on your DVR. The exception would be live events, like the news, talk shows and sporting events. Good thing there's now an standard 7-second delay used for the broadcasters to catch surprises for live TV.
TVGuardian for DVD: DVD is a different animal. TVGuardian technology works with DVD, however, the needed closed-captions aren't on all the movies -- they aren't required by law on DVDs. Prior to 2009, virtually all movies released on DVD worked with TVGuardian -- the only exception were movies released by Universal Studios. Lately, Hollywood has changed how they format closed-captions on DVD and only around 50% of the new releases work with TVG. Once again, these same movies are filtered by TVGuardian when watched on TV. You can tell if TVGuardian will work on a DVD by looking for the CC logo on the back of the box. If it has the SDH (subtitles for the deaf and hearing impaired) logo, it will not work with TVG.
TVGuardian for Blu-Ray: DVDs played on Blu-ray players upconverted to 1080p resolution will be filtered by TVGuardian with most Blu-ray players. Some Blu-Ray movies do contain the closed-captions TVGuardian technology needs to detect foul language, however, not many do. Blu-Ray primarily uses subtitles. (Top of page)
Q: Is the closed-captioned text displayed all the time?
TVGuardian has three (3) CC settings for your convenience.
- ON ALWAYS - displays continuous closed-caption text. When the filter function is on and an offensive word/phrase is detected, TVGuardian will mute the audio and replace the text with a more appropriate text phrase.
- ON MUTE - the most popular setting, it displays the edited text on your television screen only when TVGuardian has detected and muted an offensive phrase.
- OFF - never displays closed-caption text. (Top of page)
Q: Why isn't TVGuardian just built into the Satellite and Cable boxes?
We tried. We really really tried. Four years of hard work with more than 80 cable/satellite executive level meetings, and another 50 meetings in Washington with Senators, Congressmen and the FCC... even had several "we're doing it" answers by executives changed to "no we're not" by another executive with more authority. (Top of page)
Q: Do I have to have cable or satellite? What about an antenna for over-the-air TV?
High Definition TV: You must have HD cable, satellite or IPTV (AT&T U-verse or Verizon FiOS) type service. The HD TVGuardian needs to be connected between the cable/satellite box and your TV with two HDMI cables.
Standard Definition TV: You must have a cable, satellite or IPTV box. A VCR will work with cable instead of a cable box. TVGuardian will be connected between one of these items and your TV using two composite (Red/White/Yellow) cables.
Over-The-Air TV: TVG will for over-the-air HD, however, TVGuardian HD must still be connected between the tuner and the TV. Therefore, for over-the-air HD you must have something like a DVD/VCR Recorder with an ATSC tuner or a Tivo HD DVR. For older standard TVs, you must have a DTV to Analog Converter Box and use a Standard Definition TVGuardian. TVGuardian will need to be connected between the converter box and your TV using two composite (Red/White/Yellow) cables. (Top of page)
