If you’re developing a mobile game for kids that repeatedly nags for in-app purchases, you should be thoroughly ashamed of yourself — at least according to Kanye West, who has tweeted his disapproval after two year-old daughter North was pestered by one such app. It’s not clear which app he’s talking about, but it’s presumably not his wife’s own Kim Kardashian: Hollywood (offering in-app purchases from $1.99-39.99).
“We give the iPad to our child and every 5 minutes there’s a new purchase!!!” lamented Kanye, who has some 15 million followers on Twitter. “If a game is made for a two year-old, just allow them to have fun and give the parents a break.” Whether or not daughter North actually went through with any of the purchases isn’t clear.
That makes no sense!!! We give the iPad to our child and every 5 minutes there’s a new purchase!!!
— KANYE WEST (@kanyewest) October 10, 2015
Consider yourselves warned, app developers, though it’s not actually that difficult to disable in-app purchases (or at least password-protect them) if you’re passing your mobile devices over to your kids. On Android, tap “Require authentication for purchases” in the Settings section of the Play Store app; on iOS, go to Settings, then “General” and tap on “Restrictions” to disable the in-app purchases feature.
Still, that doesn’t stop games and apps from putting up prompts for in-app purchases once you reach a certain level — and that can lead to a lot of upset for kids who want to make as much progress as they can. The best course of action is to check out app reviews and descriptions so you know what you’re letting yourself (and your children) in for.
Music star Kanye West and wife Kim Kardashian are expecting their second child in December. He’s also announced his intentions to run for president in 2020, an ambition President Barack Obama responded to this weekend at a fundraiser headlined by the rapper and producer.
[Image courtesy of Tinseltown/Shutterstock.com]