5 ms·

Another non-issue like cookies.

by spindritf 12y ago

danmaz74 12y ago
It's clear you don't have children who play on a tablet.
- JetSpiegel 12y ago
  Why would children should have a tablet in the first place? Can't they just play on consoles?
  - mahouse 12y ago
    Well, that's pointless, now that most games in consoles offer in-app purchases, in the form of DLCs, etc.
    - JetSpiegel 12y ago
      Why do they need Internet connections?
      - mahouse 12y ago
        Because most games, even those for young kids such as Pokémon, have multiplayer capabilities.
- hxw 12y ago
  Should Apple and Google be responsible for what the children are doing on a tablet/mobile phone? Does not an in-app purchase require the password for an account connected to a credit card?
  - samuel 12y ago
    Not by default, at least in Android.
    - hxw 12y ago
      Ah, I didn't know that.
  - drdaeman 12y ago
    IIRC, on Android the password isn't required if a payment was done recently (like in 15-20 minutes). That's fairly convenient if you're a sole account user and you went on a shopping spree, but if you share the device/account with someone... The complaint I've read was that if a kid persuades parent to pay for an in-game option then for a brief time they can (intently or not) make further purchases without proper authorization. Or something along those lines. Not sure whenever this is still the case nowadays or had already been fixed - last time I've made payments on Play Store was months ago.
    - kuschku 12y ago
      Per default not, it just asks you every time you enter the password if you'd like to enable that 15 minute feature.
- drdaeman 12y ago
  So, the real issue is allowing to preform in-app payment by unauthorized party, not the "free" labeling (which is disguising and disgusting in my opinion, but is an old marketing trick that doesn't seem to have obvious solution).
- spain 12y ago
  Set some parental controls? Don't authorize them to use your credit card? Don't let them use the device at all if there's nothing else you can do? I know it's devious for app developers to go after kids but you can prevent it without any government intervention with a little responsibility on your part. You wouldn't give your child a credit card and let them loose in a toy store either.
  - mfringel 12y ago
    Ignoring everything in that last statement after the "but", you say: I know it's devious for app developers to go after kids Agreed. Google is doing something about that.
  - watwut 12y ago
    The trouble with parental controls used to be that they worked differently then advertised. Parent configured password, but there was grace periods of password-less 15 minutes after each buy which was not explained to user. You had to follow tech news to know about it. Or, parent configured password, but the password was required only for app store, not for IAP. Apple store does not allow you to download anything, not even free apps, if you do not have credit card set up. So, if you wanted anything on that device, you had to configure it there. Essentially, parental controls are getting better slowly, but only lately and under pressure of regulators. The other issues are already existing regulations about marketing targeted at children and when the word "free" is a lie. EU restricts kids targeted advertisements in general and has rules against lies in advertisements. A lot of debate is friction about whether app stores should follow the same rules as everybody else and how to interpret those rules in apps.
    - mitchty 12y ago
      I think ios8 will really help out with the whole situation of needing credit cards to be tied to an account. Not that that helps right now but I tested it out and it is pretty damn impressive. Glad I don't have kids right now though so I don't need to deal with it at all. >.<

Another non-issue like cookies.

danmaz74 12y ago

It's clear you don't have children who play on a tablet.

JetSpiegel 12y ago
Why would children should have a tablet in the first place? Can't they just play on consoles?
- mahouse 12y ago
  Well, that's pointless, now that most games in consoles offer in-app purchases, in the form of DLCs, etc.
  - JetSpiegel 12y ago
    Why do they need Internet connections?
    - mahouse 12y ago
      Because most games, even those for young kids such as Pokémon, have multiplayer capabilities.
hxw 12y ago
Should Apple and Google be responsible for what the children are doing on a tablet/mobile phone? Does not an in-app purchase require the password for an account connected to a credit card?
- samuel 12y ago
  Not by default, at least in Android.
  - hxw 12y ago
    Ah, I didn't know that.
- drdaeman 12y ago
  IIRC, on Android the password isn't required if a payment was done recently (like in 15-20 minutes). That's fairly convenient if you're a sole account user and you went on a shopping spree, but if you share the device/account with someone... The complaint I've read was that if a kid persuades parent to pay for an in-game option then for a brief time they can (intently or not) make further purchases without proper authorization. Or something along those lines. Not sure whenever this is still the case nowadays or had already been fixed - last time I've made payments on Play Store was months ago.
  - kuschku 12y ago
    Per default not, it just asks you every time you enter the password if you'd like to enable that 15 minute feature.
drdaeman 12y ago
So, the real issue is allowing to preform in-app payment by unauthorized party, not the "free" labeling (which is disguising and disgusting in my opinion, but is an old marketing trick that doesn't seem to have obvious solution).
spain 12y ago
Set some parental controls? Don't authorize them to use your credit card? Don't let them use the device at all if there's nothing else you can do? I know it's devious for app developers to go after kids but you can prevent it without any government intervention with a little responsibility on your part. You wouldn't give your child a credit card and let them loose in a toy store either.
- mfringel 12y ago
  Ignoring everything in that last statement after the "but", you say: I know it's devious for app developers to go after kids Agreed. Google is doing something about that.
- watwut 12y ago
  The trouble with parental controls used to be that they worked differently then advertised. Parent configured password, but there was grace periods of password-less 15 minutes after each buy which was not explained to user. You had to follow tech news to know about it. Or, parent configured password, but the password was required only for app store, not for IAP. Apple store does not allow you to download anything, not even free apps, if you do not have credit card set up. So, if you wanted anything on that device, you had to configure it there. Essentially, parental controls are getting better slowly, but only lately and under pressure of regulators. The other issues are already existing regulations about marketing targeted at children and when the word "free" is a lie. EU restricts kids targeted advertisements in general and has rules against lies in advertisements. A lot of debate is friction about whether app stores should follow the same rules as everybody else and how to interpret those rules in apps.
  - mitchty 12y ago
    I think ios8 will really help out with the whole situation of needing credit cards to be tied to an account. Not that that helps right now but I tested it out and it is pretty damn impressive. Glad I don't have kids right now though so I don't need to deal with it at all. >.<