How important is parenting to talking to their children about video games? And do the little ones spend money in online games or apps without asking?
The USK asked these and even more questions in a current survey and the results show that the vast majority of parents in Germany make clear agreements, but a surprising number of children still pay an astonishing amount of money for online games.
Probably the most exciting number in the survey: 32.8. The percentage of parents whose children buy "additional elements in online games" every month is just as high, ie every third child spends money on online games, skins, emojis and Co. every month. Here is an overview of the exact evaluations:
How much money do children spend on in-game elements per month?
- 62 percent of all parents say: My child does not spend money on online games.
- At 22.4 percent it is less than 10 euros.
- At 8.7 percent are 11 to 50 euros.
- 1.7 percent of all parents surveyed stated that their child pays more than 50 euros per month.
- 4.7 percent of the parents did not know about the payment behavior of their children.
Have children ever made digital purchases without parental permission?
- 76.2 percent the parents answered no.
- 17.4 percent of the parents stated that their child had bought something without permission.
- 0.1 percent of the respondents (the equivalent of a pair of parents) even stated that their child has already spent more than 1,000 euros without their permission.
Are there clear agreements and rules for in-game purchases between parents and children?
- At 78.7 percent clear agreements between parents apply.
- At 21.3 percent not against it. This means that every fifth child has no clear rules with their parents for the purchase of digital game content.
- Parents whose children are over 18 years old only meet in 43.3 percent of cases agreements,
Do parents use parental controls on their devices?
- 54.9 percent of parents use protection settings.
- 44.1 percent do not use parental controls, in part because they consider them unnecessary, because they are uncomfortable, or because the parents simply cannot find or understand the settings.
Have the survey a total of 1,800 parents Participated in their households, children regularly play digital games.
If you already have youngsters yourself and are wondering how you should deal with the topic yourself, then we can recommend two GameStar Plus articles, in which you will learn how to properly introduce children to video games, and on the other hand which games are suitable for children between the ages of 4 and 15.
When it comes to microtransactions, the USK wrote in September 2019 why it allows Pay2Win mechanics in games.
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