Meta has announced plans to enable children aged 10 to 12 to interact with each other in VR with parental consent. Previously, these young users were restricted from engaging with others on Quest.
In an upcoming update, parents will have the ability to designate approved contacts on Meta, permitting their children to communicate, chat, and partake in approved VR activities.
By expanding access to VR for youngsters, Meta aims to familiarize them with the technology, fostering long-term adoption. This move also positions Meta in competition with platforms like Roblox and Microsoft's Minecraft, platforms popular among the youth.
Meta stipulates that only parents can add users as approved contacts. Parents can manage these contacts by including them in their child's Following and Followed list. Children can request followers to become approved contacts, with parents retaining the authority to remove these contacts at any time.
To deliver age-appropriate VR content on Quest for 10 to 12-year-olds, Meta revised the recommended age for Quest headset usage from 13 to 10 years and introduced parent-managed accounts.
Given concerns voiced by parents, rights organizations, and researchers regarding VR safety, particularly its relatively new presence hence novel nature and associated risks, Meta is responding to legislative pressures by introducing social features to children's Quest accounts, aligning with calls for enhancing child safety on social media platforms.
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