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 & 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.
MonsterBusters: Match 3 Puzzle gameplay is when players must move up a massive tower, matching colorful monsters within a puzzle game, to save imprisoned gingerbread friends. The game starts in a dungeon and players have to ascend to the next floor level by climbing a ladder that appears after level one by completing puzzles. The visual content and animation have vibrant 3D cartoon graphics that are characteristics of child-oriented visuals. The characters' age game models appeal to children. It is fun but as you progress the levels can become more difficult. The language in the about this game section states, “a game for all ages…play with your children.”
Players can receive numerous power-ups to increase moves and hammers to strike the monsters on the board. Players can also receive bomb bonuses to clear the board if they make a cluster of four or more. Players receive points after completing each level so you can shop for what you need in the game. As well as collect rewards and stars as you progress through the game.
There is no age gate, but the app does have in-app purchasing and in-game currency. It is rated E for Everyone in the Google Play store and 4+ in the iOS store. Players can connect to Facebook to play with friends and family.
Privacy:
The developer’s privacy policy states, “Playdog Soft does not knowingly collect personal information from children...we may collect information related to you from third parties such as advertisers or social network services.”
Find Pixalate's full catalogue of reviews in our CTV and Mobile App Review Page
Screenshots of MonsterBusters: Match 3 Puzzle
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.
