Kiddie virtual worlds: prepare to be inundated

Filed under: 6-7 years, Internet, Games, Monitoring your kids, Video Games, Marketing to kidsOn the very top of Ellie's Christmas wish list was the Barbie Girls MP3 player that doubles as a USB key. The key unlocks some of the extra-special fun stuff to be found on BarbieGirls.com. Without the key, her activities on the site are limited. With the key, she joins a large group of like-minded little girls in a virtual world where they can shop, decorate and get makeovers.Virtual worlds for grownups have been around for some time. I've poked around in Second Life a little, but frankly I find the whole experience to be just a little bit weird. Apparently, I am not the only adult shying away from pretend living in pretend worlds - the growth of these so-called worlds has failed to meet the expectations of those who predict such things. But who likes make-believe more than a kid? Virtual worlds for the grade-school set are experiencing rapid growth and Debra Aho Williamson of EMarketer, predicts that by 2001, more than 20 million children will be members of a virtual world. "Get ready for total inundation," she says.This has some critics ready to do battle. "We cannot allow the media and marketing industries to construct a childhood that is all screens, all the time," said Susan Linn, a Boston psychologist and the director of the Campaign for a Commercial-Free Childhood. Of course, the "all screens, all the time" problem is nothing new. Children's television has been marketing to our kids for quite some time. And just like television, I think the key is moderation and parental supervision. If you don't allow your kids to spend all day in front of the television, why would you let them spend all day in front of a computer?Read | Permalink | Email this | Linking Blogs | Comments