Child safety groups want FTC to investigate Roblox

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Child safety advocates say the massively popular gaming platform Roblox could be bad for kids.Fairplay and the National Center on Sexual Exploitation have requested the Federal Trade Commission to investigate if the games on Roblox are designed to make kids spend an unhealthy amount of time and money on their screens.Roblox’s core users are young kids.In a letter submitted to the FTC, the groups argue that Roblox’s engagement-maximizing design features, virtual currency system, and voice and text chat communication features are inappropriate for the platform’s user base and pose a substantial risk of harm.“Alone and in combination, these three components capitalize on young users’ developmental vulnerabilities, exploit their desire for authentic self-expression, monetize their lack of impulse control, and turn in-game purchasing power into a form of social status,” the groups noted in the letter submitted Thursday to the FTC.Roblox allows the purchase of virtual assets — clothing and dance moves, for example — which can only be purchased with the platform’s in-game currency, Robux.

The platform obscures the exchange rate between dollars and the in-game currency, leaving young players to navigate a complex system of fluctuating conversion rates that increases the amount of real-world money players spend, according to the letter.For instance, players can receive more Robux per dollar by purchasing larger bundles of currency or buying a “Roblox Premium” subscription, making it harder for children to perform financial calculations on how much they are spending on the platform.The letter pointed to instances of unexpected Roblox charges, as one parent discovered that his daughter spent more than $5,000 on Roblox without understanding that she was spending real money.

The letter also outlined examples of “scarcity marketing” techniques that increase demand...