Welcome to Pixalate’s CTV & Mobile App Manual Reviews According to COPPA, a series containing the detailed factors the Trust & Safety Advisory Board educators used to assess an app’s child-directedness.
The educators manually review thousands of mobile apps available in the Google Play & Apple App Stores as well as connected TV (CTV) apps from the Roku Channel Store and Amazon Fire TV App Store using the COPPA Rule factors shown below & make those results available to the public at ratings.pixalate.com.
This post takes a look at a popular mobile app (1 million+ downloads) from the Google Play Store and Apple App Store. Our reviewer discusses how the subjective factors set forth in the COPPA Rule apply to the app and factor into the reviewer's determination as to whether the app is child-directed or general audience (i.e., it is not targeting children).
The teacher will indicate the factors they relied upon in their assessment using the 10 factors shown below that reflect the 10 child-directed factors in the COPPA Rule.
The game features a cute fish, similar in appearance to a Finding Nemo character. The game aims to collect coins which allow the user to expand their aquarium with decorations and other trinkets. There are minigames available to gain coins but the main theme is a match-three game. The game provides clear instructions and hints along the way, so the user is never left without knowing what to do next.
Several aspects of this game serve to maintain motivation in the user. The extra minigames, purchasing of items for the aquarium, special events, and rewards for achieving different levels. Different fish in a variety of outfits become available to purchase at level 19.
The game begins by asking users to enter their age. This method is insufficient to class as an official age gate and it is not clear how the game uses that information. It states “This will not affect the game”. Reviews in the App Store state that the game is “suitable for all ages” and it is rated 4+. The Google Play Store rates it as E, suitable for everyone.
Privacy:
The developer’s privacy policy makes no mention of COPPA requirements. They do not specifically address why they ask for the user's age before the game begins. However, they state that they do not collect or solicit data for anyone under the age of 16.
Find Pixalate's full catalogue of reviews in our CTV and Mobile App Review Page
Screenshots of Fishdom
Pixalate’s Trust and Safety Advisory Board was created to bring in individuals with experience using child-directed apps in the classroom to review and assess which apps are child-directed. This manual review process serves to quality check Pixalate’s automated review process. See our full methodology for more information.
Disclaimer
This blog post published by Pixalate is available for informational purposes only and is not considered legal advice. By viewing this blog post, the reader understands and agrees that there is no attorney-client relationship between the reader and the blog publisher. The blog should not be used as a substitute for legal advice from a licensed professional attorney in the applicable jurisdiction(s), and readers are urged to consult their own legal counsel on any specific legal questions concerning any specific situation. The content of this blog post reflects Pixalate's opinions with respect to factors that Pixalate believes may be useful to the digital media industry. Pixalate's opinions are just that, opinions, which means that they are neither facts nor guarantees; and this blog post is not intended to impugn the standing or reputation of any entity, person or app, but instead, to report findings pertaining to mobile and Connected TV (CTV) apps.
