Parents need to know that this free online video site is not a great choice for kids. Raunchy content can't be filtered and the site has as many commercials as network TV. Kids can't upload an unlimited number of videos to this premium site, which features "best of" content, nor can they make videos private like they can on YouTube. With supervision, kids can have fun watching the safe stuff on Metacafe -- singing dogs, PBS, and old TV shows like the Partridge Family and the like. But they can find all that and more on YouTube plus instantly share homemade videos with family and friends.
Educational value:This self-described premium site is picky about submissions: users can wait days for approval and 90 percent of videos are rejected, so it's not an encouraging environment for kids. (By contrast, YouTube automatically posts videos.) The site does have some decent content for kids, but parents will have to ferret it out: a how-to section, a few Mister Rogers' Neighborhood episodes, lots of news segments and episodes of educational shows like the cooking series Epicurious.
Positive messages:Like YouTube, the site is a grab bag of everything from dreck like the Playboy Best Butt challenge to episodes of Biography, with plenty in between. The free-for-all certainly teaches kids freedom of speech, but parents will want to establish what they consider acceptable.
Violence:Most videos on the site aren't violent but some are. Watch out for gory movie trailers, intense game demos, court-room beatings caught on tape, and disturbing clips such as the soccer player who collapses and dies on the field.
Sex:There's lots of adult-oriented material kids really shouldn't see. We found steamy movie and game previews, naughty Harry Potter parodies, ads for escort services, how-to sex tutorials and lots of naked flesh -- and that was with the Family Filter turned on.
Language:The vast majority of clips are okay, but a few, mostly TV segments such as the Sarah Silverman Show, have crude language like f--k and a--hole. So do some of the unregulated public comments and forum posts.
Consumerism:There are ads everywhere you turn. Most of the products being advertised are G rated and the banners are tasteful, not junky-looking flash. However, searches can turn up related Google ads that are X-rated, and most of the videos on the site are preceded by long annoying commercials that put an awful lot of product placement in the user's way. In one hour of surfing we must have sat through the same 30-second Mucinex spot at least a dozen times.
Drinking, drugs, & smoking:TV and movie clips that parody or treat these bad habits matter-of-factly seem to outnumber the educational videos.
Privacy & safety:Privacy is pretty good, although not as good as YouTube's. The only personal info users are required to share is an email address, and that's only if they want to upload their own videos. Users can remove their own videos from the site at any time. However, they can't take back comments or choose who can see their videos. All submissions, if accepted, are public.
Parents might reasonably conclude from all the ratings and filters that they have some control over what kids view but alas, as with most other video sites, they do not. Kids can watch any video, even those rated 13+ or 18+ for mature viewers. The so-called Family Filter works about as well as YouTube's minor filter; in other words, not at all judging from the nudity and foul language that sails right through.
Our ratings and reviews are informed by child development guidelines. Learn more.