Uber will now let parents remotely watch children's rides through their drivers' smartphones. Announced on Tuesday, the rideshare service has added a live video streaming feature to teen accounts, allowing their guardians to monitor them on their trips.
To use this new feature, the Uber driver must first have enabled live video. If they've done so and someone with an Uber teen account begins a trip, the adult linked to the account will receive a push notification alerting them that live video of the ride is available. The parent simply needs to tap the notification, and they'll be treated to a live feed from the front-facing camera on the driver's phone. Both the teen and the driver will receive notifications letting them know a parent is watching, and the stream will automatically end at the conclusion of the trip. Of course, this feature doesn't guarantee that anxious parents will be able to see their child in the Uber. Depending upon how the driver's phone is positioned, they may only get a view of the car's ceiling. However, considering that phone mounts are extremely common amongst Uber drivers, there's a good chance that at the very least they'll see the driver. Uber even suggests that drivers use a phone mount if they don't have app integration in the car itself.
