Meta's Horizon Worlds expands to younger audience with parental controls
Meta has announced its decision to extend access to Horizon Worlds, its immersive 3D social platform, to users aged between 10 and 12. This expansion will be accompanied by robust parental controls, that will regulate the experiences accessible to preteens on the platform. The company aims to ensure a safe and age-appropriate environment for younger users through this initiative.
Parental approval required for preteen access
To gain access to Horizon Worlds, preteens must have a Meta account managed by their parents and seek permission to use the platform. Once this is granted, they can either request individual experiences or be given blanket access to all experiences within a certain age rating. Meta has implemented an age-rating system for experiences suitable for ages 10 and up, 13 and up, as well as 18 and up.
Additional safety measures on Horizon Worlds
Meta has introduced additional safety measures specifically for preteen users. By default, voice chat is disabled for accounts managed by parents, but can be enabled for certain contacts if parents permit. Preteens will appear as offline unless a parent alters this setting. Furthermore, a personal boundary feature in Horizon Worlds will be activated to prevent other users from invading their virtual space.
3D social platform extends beyond VR
Initially, Horizon Worlds was exclusively available in virtual reality (VR). However, the platform has now been extended to include experiences that can be accessed via the Meta Horizon mobile app. This move is part of Meta's recent redesign of the app to emphasize more on Horizon Worlds. The company also announced last month that preteens with parent-managed accounts could chat or call with others in mixed reality and VR experiences, subject to parental approval.
