MINNEAPOLIS — A New Ulm native recently announced the launch of a social and health communications platform that enables multiple generations in various cities to instantly connect and communicate with their loved one through a smart TV.

With a TheirCare subscription–and no new equipment–the sandwich generation can regularly check in on their elderly parents by placing two-way video calls or by sending text messages, photos, or videos to the TV.

TheirCare, part of First Layer Heath, founded and operated by Paul Wessel, enables all generations to connect and communicate through the devices they prefer. With TheirCare, navigation on the TV is extremely simple: only the directional pad is required.

TheirCare is available by securing a subscription at their.care. Subscriptions connect two parents and five family members with one another.

“We worry about our parents, and we want a better, simpler way of digitally connecting with them through a device they can understand, Wessel said. “Unfortunately, many of the solutions offered today are complicated and confusing–it just shouldn’t have to be that way. TheirCare solves that beautifully by establishing a secure digital communications platform where anyone can use their preferred device to communicate with the television, which by far is the device our parents prefer.

“We must remember that, 70 percent of the time, the primary caregiver of an elderly individual is their spouse, who shares similar biases and phobias about technology. If we are to break down these adoption barriers, the devices and the manner in which we communicate with them must be simple and easily understood.”

TheirCare is presently available on Google’s Android TV operating system, the fastest growing TV platform in the world. TheirCare can be installed from the Google Play Store or from the Amazon Appstore.

The Android TV operating system powers smart TVs from Sony, Sharp, Philips, and other manufacturers worldwide. TheirCare can also be installed on over-the-top video streaming devices such as Amazon Fire TV and NVIDIA SHIELD, and on Android-powered set-top boxes from Arris, Amino, Technicolor, and many more.

For more information about Android TV, see android.com/tv. For a complete listing of Android TV devices, visit sites.google.com/view/droid-tv..