BOCA RATON, Fla., Nov. 3, 2021 /PRNewswire/ -- Grom Social Enterprises, Inc. (NASDAQ: GROM), a social media platform and original content provider of entertainment for kids, today unveiled new features in the Grom Social media app that allow schools, teachers, classrooms, and students to connect in a safe forum overseen by educators. Now, classrooms can use the Grom Social media app as a valuable educational tool designed to promote the benefits of kids being safe and responsible while on social media, or anywhere in today's digital landscape. The new features were announced today by Darren Marks, Grom's Chairman and Chief Executive Officer.

The new program represents the company's latest foray into the classroom to keep kids safe online. The sign-up process is easy. Teachers and other school officials at elementary or middle schools simply need to contact Grom at [email protected] from a school-issued email for authentication and to participate. Students who opt-in must gain parental consent to join the program. Educators everywhere can now provide internet safety instruction for kids in a safe, COPPA-compliant, and fully monitored social media app designed exclusively for kids under the age of 13. The new feature expands on the offerings from one of Grom Social's subsidiary brands, Grom Educational Services, which provides NetSpective web filtering solutions for K-12 schools, government, and private businesses nationwide.

Now, educators can use the Grom Social media app as a valuable classroom tool to teach kids internet safety and responsibility.

Once approved by Grom Social, schools and teachers may create their own secure pages for posting announcements, events, updates, and other news, which will be shared only with students at that school. Teachers can also create an account page where they will be able to post assignments, updates, and chat in real-time outside of the classroom. Teachers will also be able to monitor their students' progress to complete Grom's proprietary Digital Citizenship License course (DCL), which teaches kids the dos and don'ts of being a responsible digital citizen.

"Internet safety for kids is very much a growing concern and priority for today's families and educators alike," said Marks. "By offering new features through Grom Social that complement in-classroom learning, practical school-led safety instruction, and a Digital Citizenship licensing course, we can help prepare the next generation of digital citizens for a lifetime of responsible and safe digital experiences."

Grom recently announced several new in-app safety features that give parents of Grom Social users complete control over their kids' personal identifiable information (PII) and greater ability to monitor their child's activity while posting, sharing, and chatting with other kids on the app.

A pioneer in kids' social media, Grom debuted in 2012 as a website, in 2016 became a popular kids' social media app, and the first and only company to create a platform for kids-by-kids that is COPPA compliant, offers live 24/7 monitoring, and requires parental approval to join. The safety features now offered in-app include settings to control PII on each child, as well as visibility controls that allow parents or guardians to monitor their kids' video posts, friend requests, chats, and comments. Additionally, Grom provides an added layer of protection by requiring a one-time .99 cent fee, paid via credit card by a parent/guardian to verify their identity. 

Grom Social offers kids under 13 all the popular social media features typically found in social apps for older kids and grown-ups -- including recording and sharing videos, live commenting, hashtags, streaming video content, direct messaging, music, and hundreds of hours of exclusive Grom TV content. The brainchild of Zach Marks, (now 21), Grom Social was created when Zach was 11 and his parents denied his pleas to have a social account, which routinely requires users to be at least 13 years old. With parental encouragement and family teamwork, the Marks Family created Grom Social to give kids a social networking experience all their own...while protecting them from the dangers typically associated with the internet. 

About Grom Social Enterprises, Inc.
Grom Social Enterprises, Inc. is a growing social media platform and original content provider of entertainment for children under 13 years of age, which provides safe and secure digital environments for kids that can be monitored by their parents or guardians. The Company has several operating subsidiaries, including Grom Social, which delivers its content through mobile and desktop environments (web portal and apps) that entertain children, let them interact with friends, access relevant news, and play proprietary games while teaching them about being good digital citizens. The Company owns and operates Curiosity Ink Media, a global media company that develops, acquires, builds, grows, and maximizes the short, mid & long-term commercial potential of Kids & Family entertainment properties and associated business opportunities and Top Draw Animation, which produces award-winning animation content for some of the largest international media companies in the world. Grom also includes Grom Educational Services, which has provided web filtering services for K-12 schools, government and private businesses. For more information, please visit gromsocial.com.

Forward-Looking Statements
This press release contains statements, which may constitute "forward-looking statements.". Those statements include statements regarding the intent, belief, or current expectations of Grom and members of its management team as well as the assumptions on which such statements are based. Such forward-looking statements are not guarantees of future performance and involve risks and uncertainties, and that actual results may differ materially from those contemplated by such forward-looking statements. Important factors currently known to management that may cause actual results to differ from those anticipated are discussed throughout the Company's reports filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission which are available at www.sec.gov as well as the Company's website at www.gromsocial.com. The Company undertakes no obligation to update or revise forward-looking statements to reflect changed assumptions, the occurrence of unanticipated events, or changes to future operating results.

SOURCE Grom Social Enterprises, Inc.