Key Points about Pics-label

The PICS platform is one on which other rating services and filtering software have been built.

Category: Pics-label Multiculturalism

• Interactive: Active involvement of user in multicultural activity using interactive techniques.
• Promotion: Active promotion of multiculturalism.
• Positive: Multicultural events presented in context; artistic work presented in the original culture.
• Neutral: No cultural context; reference works, dictionaries, catalogs.
• Negative: Multicultural events presented from a monoculture viewpoint; translation of artistic work from one culture into another for other than artistic reasons
• Demotion: Actively discourages multiculturalism; one culture or religion is defined as the only true culture

Category: Pics-label Education

• Interactive: Active involvement of user in educational activity using interactive techniques.
• Educational: Educational material, created specifically to educate.
• Informative: Informational material, dictionaries, catalogs, factual accounts, works of literature, works of art, etc.
• None: Devoid of educational or artistic content.
• Misinformation: Presents information known to be false as fact; e.g. Holocaust denial.
  

  
  Category: Pics-label Environmental Awareness

• Interactive: Active involvement of user in environmentally positive activity using interactive techniques.
• Promotion: Encouragement of environmental awareness.
• Positive: Portrayal of environmentally sensitive behaviour; recycling, conservation, proper disposal etc.
• Neutral: No environmental content
• Negative: Portrayal of environmentally insensitive behaviour by minor characters; pollution of resources, improper disposal.
• Demotion: Promotion of environmentally damaging behaviour by role-model figures; destruction of resources, habitat, animal species.

Category: Pics-label Tolerance

• Promotion: Promotion of tolerant behaviour.
• Positive: Portrayal of tolerant behaviour.
• Neutral: No Intolerant content; reference works, etc.
• Negative: Portrayal of intolerant behaviour by minor characters
• Intolerance: Portrayal of intolerant behaviour by role-model figures.
• Active Intolerance: Promoting hatred based on differences in religion, culture, race, sexual orientation etc.
• Unlimited Intolerance: Active promotion of intolerant behaviour; calling for ethnic cleansing, Jihad, genocide etc.

Category: Pics-label Violence

• None: No violent content.
• Reference: Reference works portraying violence, news with violent content.
• Minor: In-context violence by minor characters, self-defence by role models.
• Major: In-context violence by role model characters.
• Extreme: Frequent violence by role models, promotion of violent behaviour, treatment of human beings as disposable objects, rape.

Unlimited: Killing, torture, rape in creation of entertainment product. Snuff movies. Active involvement of the user in violent activity using teleoperator techniques, remote controlled torture of animals or humans.

Category: Pics-label Sex

• None: No sexual content.
• Minor: Implicit in-context sexual conduct by consenting adults; no nudity.
• Reference: Reference works portraying sex, reproduction; educational material.
• Nudity: In-context sexual conduct by consenting adults; nudity, no penetration. Out-of-context sexual conduct, partial nudity; sex used as a promotional tool.
• Normal: In-context sexual conduct by consenting adults; vaginal penetration of female by male only.
• Other: Sexual conduct by consenting adults; penetration, anal, toys. Interactive viewing of sexual activity using videoconference techniques.
• Interactive: Active involvement of the user in sexual activity using teleoperator techniques, tactile virtual reality.
• Unlimited: Non-consensual sex, rape, sex with minors, animals; mutilation, torture.

Category: Pics-label Profanity

• None: No profanity.
  Reference: Reference works, dictionaries.
• Minor: Occasional profanity by minor characters; mild in-context profanity by role model characters.
• Major: Frequent profanity by role model characters.
• Unlimited: Constant profanity by all characters.

Category: Pics-label Safety

• Active: Active promotion of safe work and personal behaviour.
• Positive: Portrayal of safe behaviour by role-models. Technical manuals and books describing safe practice.
• Neutral: No safety-related content.
  Negative: Promotion of unsafe behaviour. Drug use, reckless driving by role models. Suggestions that safe behaviour is effeminate or unmanly.
• Misleading: Presentation of misleading information, that if acted on could result in injury or death. Representation of known harmful activities such as smoking as beneficial.

Category: Pics-label Canadian Content

• All: All-Canadian content
• Some: Some Canadian content or production
• None: No Canadian content

Category: Pics-label Commercial Content

• None: No commercial content; no advertising material.
• Minor: Minor commercial content, corporate sponsorship, low-key advertising.
• Major: Major commercial content, high-impact advertising, infomercials
• Interactive: Online purchasing of products or services.

Category: Pics-label Gambling

• None: No gambling or games of chance.
• Fun: Games of chance for fun only; no monetary value of stakes or prizes.
• No-stake: Limited games of chance, no monetary value of stakes.
• Unlimited: Games of chance where stakes must be purchased or have a monetary value.