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New TV sets in the US include a V-chip which makes the screen go blank if a
violence rating is exceeded. The V codes are transmitted with subtitle data for
the deaf. But the system doesn’t work in Europe, where teletext has no space for
extra codes. Now Philips is patenting (W0 98/36568) a device that will work: it
piggybacks on the system that makes TVs switch to widescreen format when a
widescreen programme is broadcast. The widescreen signals have room for an extra
2-bit code: 00 for zero violence, 01 for low violence, 10 for medium violence
and 11 for highly violent programmes and movies.