I am sure there are many parents out there that have given their smartphones to their children to play on the apps, so how concerning it is that there are apps out there that may be enticing kids to spend real money without them actually realising.
Well some Apple customers, whose children ended up spending real money whilst playing a game application in which virtual goods could be purchased, are suing Apple, saying their kids were encouraged to buy from the iTunes App Store without actually knowing what they were doing.
Now recently Apple changed the procedures in the games so they required passwords for every in-app purchase, but the parents say this is not enough of a reason not to sue them. The lawyers for Garen Meguerian, Phoenixville, Pa., filed a suit on Monday with Apple, with a claim that Apple let Meguerian’s nine-year-old daughter buy virtual goods through several game apps and she did not needed authorization from her parents.
The lawsuit says, Meguerian had permitted his daughter to download some free games from the iTunes App Store, which included “Treasure Story,” “Zombie Cafe,” and “City Story,” However, a few weeks later, he found out that she had also purchased about $200 in virtual cash from these games as well, when he received his credit card bill.
For the full story, visit TopTechReviews. Now you would think that this would be a good reason for apple to review the use of in-app purchasing (which has risen from a mere eight percent in 2010 to more than 31 percent in 2011 so far) and possibly put a stop to it. However, Distimo a mobile research firm discovered that 34% of the revenue received by the top 100 iOS apps in December 2010 was from free applications that featured in-app purchasing – So I guess there here to stay.
Please let us know you opinion on in-app purchasing and any concerns you may have with it, in the comment box below. You never know if enough people raise their concerns, Apple may pull the plug on these kinds of apps… but don’t stake you house on it.
