📰 Meta to Lower Age for Users of Virtual Reality Headset to 10 From 13 😮🔮
Di company wey own Facebook and Instagram, Meta, don tok say dem wan reduce di age wey dem recommend for pipo to use dia Quest headset from 13 years to 10 years. 😲 Dem yarn dis one for one blog post on Friday, and e fit bring new privacy and safety palava for parents and global watchdogs. 🚫👁️🗨️
Two people wey sabi wetin dey happen for Meta say di company dey talk about dia plans with regulators, as dem dey try calm down di concerns of parents and watchdogs wey dey fear say young children wey use di headset fit dey at risk. 🗣️🔐🔓
Meta tok say dem go need permission from di parents of di pikin wey wan use di headset before dem go fit set up di account, and di young users go only see apps and content wey dem rate for pipo wey dey di age group of preteens. The Quest headset allow pipo enta di so-called metaverse, wey be online world wey full ground, make dem play virtual reality games and do oda kain tins. 🎮🌍💫
For di past year, Meta don gradually dey reduce di age restriction for dia virtual reality apps so dem fit reach young audience. For April, di company tok say pipo wey dey under 18 fit use Horizon Worlds, wey be dia virtual reality-based social network, and from wetin we hear, plenti young pipo dey use am. But, Horizon Worlds go still restrict di use to pipo wey dey 13 years and above, as The Verge bin report earlier. 📅📲🔞
Inside di blog post wey Meta publish, dem tok say dem change di age for di Quest headset “to give families even more ways to use and enjoy Meta Quest.” Dem add say dem dey committed to “building safe, positive experiences for young people.” 🤝👨👩👧👦✨
Plenti palava don dey ground on top how teenagers and children dey use technology. Last month, di United States surgeon general, Dr. Vivek Murthy, bin warn di public say social media fit dey danger young people wella, and e call on policymakers make dem limit pipo’s access to social media to protect dem and dia privacy. 📵⚠️🧒
Virtual reality na new tin, and di risks wey e get still dey come out. But researchers don yan say harassment, assault, bullying, and hate speech dey run sote virtual reality games wey dey inside di metaverse, and pipo no too get easy way to report di bad tins wey dem see. 😟❌🚫🔊
As di concerns dey increase, regulators don dey take action. Di Federal Trade Commission (FTC) don dey take strong action against tech companies wey dey violate di federal children’s privacy law. Dis law, wey dem call Children’s Online Privacy Protection Act, require sites and apps wey target young pipo to get permission from parents before dem collect personal information like email address or precise location from any child wey dey under 13 years. 🔒👨👩👦👦🔐
Meta and dia platforms don dey give regulators serious headache. Last month, FTC bin tok say dem dey think about how to stop Meta from dey make money from young pipo’s data for all dia platforms, including Instagram and Horizon Worlds, and say di company’s “recklessness” don dey put young users for risk. Meta con later ask federal court to stop FTC’s action wey dem propose. 🚨⚖️💥
As Meta dey build di virtual reality version of di metaverse, dem need to lower di age requirements for di Quest headset sake of the future. Mark Zuckerberg, wey be di founder and chief executive of di company, don spend di past two years dey shift im social networking business to the metaverse. Last year, e spend nearly $14 billion to expand Reality Labs, di arm of di company wey dey build hardware and develop the metaverse. 💻🌌💰
Di high costs wey dem dey spend to turn di metaverse into mainstream business don dey shake Wall Street, and e cause Meta’s stock to fall last year. Enthusiasm for the metaverse don also reduce over di past year, as more technologists don dey focus on the rise of artificial intelligence with the release of chatbots like ChatGPT. Mr. Zuckerberg don push to incorporate A.I. into Meta’s products. 👥📉🤖
But e don tok say e still dey focused on di metaverse. For one companywide meeting last week, Mr. Zuckerberg assure im employees say e dey committed to im virtual reality and augmented reality plans, and say e go take time to achieve im vision. ⏳🚀
Lowering the minimum age requirements for the company’s Quest headset fit help familiarize younger audiences with the metaverse, similar to how Facebook start for college campuses for 2004, so that dem go fit continue use di technology as dem grow up. 🎯📚📈
Meta dey try make demsef part of young pipo’s lives, as dem dey follow strategy wey oda gaming companies don use, like Roblox, Microsoft with im Minecraft game, and Epic Games, wey be di maker of Fortnite. Dem games get plenti pipo wey dey play dem, wey reach hundreds of millions, and many of dem dey under 35 years. 👾🌟🕹️
“What we have seen is Meta, based solely on business imperatives, continually lowering the age of their virtual reality products and doing so without any evidence that these things are safe for young people,” said Josh Golin, the executive director of Fairplay, a nonprofit children’s advocacy group. “It’s beyond the pale and clearly driven by the fact that they are trying to compete for a market, not driven by kids’ needs.” 👨💼🤔👶
Meta dey work to assure regulators say dem go provide parental controls to keep young users safe when dem dey use the device, according to di two people wey sabi di company’s plans and wey yarn on condition of anonymity. Some of dem controls fit include time limits, controls wey parents go manage for content or apps, and privacy settings wey no go allow oda pipo wey dey use Horizon Worlds to follow preteens unless dem get approval from di preteens or dia parents. ⏰🔒👨👩👧👦🛡️
Di company tok say dem go use data from preteens wey try di Quest headset to give dem “age-appropriate experience,” but dem no go show ads to di age group. Parents fit also delete dia children’s profiles and di data wey dey connected to am. ♻️🔏🧒
E go beta if Meta fit address di privacy and safety concerns wey dey ground, especially as dem dey target younger users for dia virtual reality products. Di company go need to put measures for ground wey go ensure say young pipo dey protected from di potential risks wey dey di metaverse. Na important matter wey need proper attention to ensure say young pipo dey enjoy di benefits of technology without any harm. 🙏👦👧🔒🌈
NOW IN ENGLISH
📰 Meta to Lower Age for Users of Virtual Reality Headset to 10 From 13 😮🔮
The company that owns Facebook and Instagram, Meta, has announced that they intend to decrease the recommended age for people to use their Quest headset from 13 years to 10 years. 😲 They shared this news in a blog post on Friday, which could potentially raise new privacy and safety concerns for parents and global watchdogs. 🚫👁️🗨️
According to two insiders familiar with Meta’s plans, the company is discussing these changes with regulators as they try to address the worries of parents and watchdogs who fear that young children using the headset may be at risk. 🗣️🔐🔓
Meta states that they will require parental permission for children wanting to use the headset, and young users will only have access to apps and content rated for preteens. The Quest headset allows people to enter the so-called metaverse, an expansive online world where they can play virtual reality games and engage in other activities. 🎮🌍💫
Over the past year, Meta has gradually been lowering the age restrictions for their virtual reality apps to reach a younger audience. In April, the company announced that individuals under 18 could use Horizon Worlds, their virtual reality-based social network, and it seems that many young people have been utilizing it. However, Horizon Worlds will still restrict usage to those who are 13 years and older, as reported earlier by The Verge. 📅📲🔞
In their published blog post, Meta stated that they made the age change for the Quest headset “to give families even more ways to use and enjoy Meta Quest.” They added that they are committed to “building safe, positive experiences for young people.” 🤝👨👩👧👦✨
There have been ongoing concerns regarding how teenagers and children use technology. Last month, the United States Surgeon General, Dr. Vivek Murthy, issued a public warning about the dangers social media can pose to young people, calling on policymakers to limit access to protect their well-being and privacy. 📵⚠️🧒
Virtual reality is a relatively new frontier, and its associated risks are still being discovered. However, researchers have reported instances of harassment, assault, bullying, and hate speech occurring within virtual reality games in the metaverse, with limited mechanisms for reporting such incidents. 😟❌🚫🔊
As concerns continue to mount, regulators are taking action. The Federal Trade Commission (FTC) has been pursuing aggressive measures against tech companies that violate the federal children’s privacy law. This law, known as the Children’s Online Privacy Protection Act, mandates that sites and apps targeting young individuals obtain parental consent before collecting personal information such as email addresses or precise locations from children under 13 years old. 🔒👨👩👦👦🔐
Meta and its platforms have been giving regulators a significant headache. Last month, the FTC announced that it was considering measures to curb Meta’s monetization of young people’s data across all their platforms, including Instagram and Horizon Worlds, citing the company’s “recklessness” in putting young users at risk. Meta later sought a federal court’s intervention to halt the proposed action by the FTC. 🚨⚖️💥
As Meta develops the virtual reality version of the metaverse, they recognize the need to lower the age requirements for the Quest headset to secure its future. Mark Zuckerberg, the founder and CEO of the company, has spent the past two years shifting the focus of his social networking business towards the metaverse. Last year, Meta invested nearly $14 billion in expanding Reality Labs, the division responsible for hardware development and metaverse advancement. 💻🌌💰
The significant costs associated with turning the metaverse into a mainstream business have unsettled Wall Street and caused Meta’s stock to decline. Enthusiasm for the metaverse has also waned over the past year as more technologists have turned their attention to the rise of artificial intelligence, exemplified by chatbots like ChatGPT. Mr. Zuckerberg has been pushing to incorporate AI into Meta’s products. 👥📉🤖
Nevertheless, he has made it clear that he remains committed to the metaverse. In a company-wide meeting last week, Mr. Zuckerberg reassured his employees that he is dedicated to his virtual reality and augmented reality plans, emphasizing that achieving his vision will take time. ⏳🚀
Lowering the minimum age requirements for Meta’s Quest headset can help introduce younger audiences to the metaverse, similar to how Facebook began on college campuses in 2004, enabling users to continue using the technology as they grow older. 🎯📚📈
Meta aims to become a part of young people’s lives, employing strategies that other gaming companies such as Roblox, Microsoft with Minecraft, and Epic Games with Fortnite have successfully used. These games have attracted a significant user base, numbering in the hundreds of millions, with many players being under 35 years old. 👾🌟🕹️
“What we have seen is Meta, based solely on business imperatives, continually lowering the age of their virtual reality products and doing so without any evidence that these things are safe for young people,” said Josh Golin, the executive director of Fairplay, a nonprofit children’s advocacy group. “It’s beyond the pale and clearly driven by the fact that they are trying to compete for a market, not driven by kids’ needs.” 👨💼🤔👶
Meta is working to assure regulators that they will provide parental controls to keep young users safe while using the device, as confirmed by two individuals familiar with the company’s plans who spoke on the condition of anonymity. Some of these controls may include time limits, content and app management by parents, and privacy settings that prevent other users on Horizon Worlds from interacting with preteens unless approved by the preteens or their parents. ⏰🔒👨👩👧👦🛡️
Meta has stated that they will use data from preteens trying the Quest headset to offer them an “age-appropriate experience,” but they will not display ads to this age group. Parents will also have the ability to delete their children’s profiles and the associated data. ♻️🔏🧒
It is crucial for Meta to address the privacy and safety concerns at hand, particularly as they target younger users with their virtual reality products. The company must implement measures to ensure that young people are protected from the potential risks within the metaverse. This is an important matter that requires careful attention to ensure that young individuals can enjoy the benefits of technology without any harm. 🙏👦👧🔒🌈
