Image via CrunchBase
Since 2011 Apple has been fighting a case against parents whose children unwittingly spent real life money in the virtual world of ‘free apps’. The case hinged on the fact the apps were sold under the guise of being free, many of the kids did not realise that they were spending their parents hard earned money and the parents defiantly did not consent to their child spending hundreds of dollars keeping virtual fish alive (Tap Fish being the most prevalent culprit of the in app purchase swindle). Children playing the game realised that unless you wanted the game to be very dull you would have to buy extra coins, not realising these fake coins they were spending on their virtual fish cost real money. The ease of acquiring extra coins was exacerbated by a 15 minute password window that was opened after it had been entered, this meant that after a parent had entered their password for quarter of an hour kids could purchase as much the like through parents accounts using money straight from their bank or credit card (this window was closed in the iOS update 4.3). The claims of the parents fighting the case were between $150-$1500, a lot of money for many. Assiva Mandvi who conducted a report on this subject for ‘The Daily Show’ likened this business practice to that of a drug dealer;
‘Turns out these games are free, until you don’t want them to suck. At which point, kids can simply push this button and instantly charge a $100 worth of better fish to an iTunes account’
The parents claimed Apple did do enough to prevent the purchase of in app currency without the account holders consent and a settlement has been reached by both parties. Apple will be emailing 22 million iTunes customers affected by this decision, they will offering anyone who claims under $30 iTunes vouchers with a cash refund offer to anyone who can prove a minor brought in app currency of over $30 in any 45 day period.
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