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Problem, solved.

On Saturday Oct 14th 2017, I took part in a Voice UI Hackathon hosted at the Burda Bootcamp in Munich and powered by Amazon and Maxdome.


Background

Maxdome, the fourth-largest video streaming service in Germany, had opened its API to hackathon participants so Alexa could communicate with Maxdome’s metadata. The goal, though not explicitly stated, was likely to enable users to control Maxdome’s video services through voice commands on Alexa devices.

The hackathon was fully booked with over 120 participants, and I attended, having experience with VoiceUI but never participating in a large hackathon event. During the event, I met a senior Java developer, and we started discussing the challenges and concerns of parents regarding children consuming inappropriate video content.
As the team leader, I saw the potential to address these issues by bringing together a diverse group of participants to collaborate on a solution.

The Problem

The problem was twofold: children could easily access inappropriate video content, and existing security measures, like a pin code, were not practical or secure, especially when spoken out loud in front of the family. I was particularly concerned after an incident where my daughter had purchased content without consent on Amazon Prime Video.

Our goal was to find a way to prevent children from accessing unsuitable video content and address the security flaw in Maxdome’s system. As the team leader, I was focused on creating a more secure, practical, and child-proof solution for controlling video content via Alexa.

The Solution

We came up with the idea of using a voice-based captcha system to ensure that the person requesting content was an adult. We explored different approaches, including voice signal frequency recognition, voice recognition, and security questions.

After considering the options, I led the team in deciding to use age-appropriate security questions based on the content ratings (FSK 6, FSK 12, FSK 16, FSK 18). We selected movies for each category and started building a prototype that allowed Alexa to verify the age of the user before granting access to content, using questions that children would not be able to answer.

The benefits

  • Our solution allowed for better control over what children could watch, addressing the growing concern of age-inappropriate content.
  • It was an easy and secure way for parents to limit their children’s access to content based on age.
  • The solution was both practical and scalable, with the ability to be implemented in Maxdome’s system.

Ultimately, we won the hackathon, proving the value of our solution.

“As the team leader, I ensured that our prototype stood out in the hackathon because it addressed a real user need, provided an intuitive user experience, and offered a clear solution to a significant problem.”

– Sébastien Fabre

 

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