There are some cool games out there, I am afraid if I started playing I would never leave the house. But this is a good read for parents with kids.
In-game app charges on kids' games have become a real problem for parents. It's not uncommon for parents to find their checking accounts or credit cards dinged for anywhere from $5 to $100 each time their children play "free" games.
In some really extreme examples, the CBC reports a Canadian mom was hit with $3,000 in charges after her twins played Clash of Clans, a freemium app for iOS!
Huffington Post reports a 5 year old racked up $2,500 in charges after playing the free game Zombies vs. Ninja on a parent's iPad. And a 6 year old ran up $3,200 on his grandfather's credit card playing Tiny Monsters, a free Android app.
To avoid this happening to you, see below for links that explain how you can turn off in-app purchases for Android, iOS, Nook, and Kindle. (Editor's note: Special thanks to reader Vincent Tapia for this suggestion.)
What's going on with all these massive charges for "free" games? Basically, in the course of game play, a child might click on something to advance in game play. That action would register a charge on a parent's iTunes or Google Play account.
My executive producer Christa and I handle this problem in different ways. My kids know they are to never buy any optional add-ons to any freemium app.
Christa, on the other hand, reasons through the problem like this: She says she could buy a board game for around $10 or a PlayStation game for much more money. So if her kid wants a $2 educational game like Stack the States, for example, she doesn't have a problem paying for it.
The Wall Street Journal reports that 1 million kids age 6 have purchased apps or made other in-game purchase in recent month. Meanwhile, 60% of kids aged 8-12 say they use apps regularly and face additional add-on charges.
One possible compromise between our two points of view is that kids can spend their allowance or money they earn from a job on apps if they wish.
How does it work in your house? Write in and let me kno - See more at: Free kids gaming apps can cost you big bucks | www.clarkhoward.com
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