Epic builds on Lego: Metaverse project planned for children with focus on safety
Epic Games and Lego want to make the Metaverse accessible to children as well. A vision with a future?
The question of security is an omnipresent topic in the digital space, from data protection to harassment to hate speech. The question is also relevant in the Metaverse context.
Social VR applications and Metaverse apps are repeatedly criticized for not doing enough to protect participants. Toxic behavior and harassment are serious concerns for the Metaverse plans of technology companies. What policies need to be in place and who will set them?
Epic Games and Lego are building a Metaverse for kids
Epic Games and Lego see great potential in the Metaverse for younger generations. Together, they want to create a social experience that allows kids to learn and be creative through play in virtual spaces. Exactly what the project will revolve around is not yet known. Presumably, it will be a competitor to Minecraft and Roblox. It is unclear whether virtual reality will play a role.
Instead, the two companies focus more on safety issues in the announcement of their collaboration. LEGO CEO Christiansen sees his responsibility in protecting those virtual creative spaces from the dangers of the virtual world.
Parental Control in the Age of the Metaverse
Epic Games has already bought the kidtech platform SuperAwesome in 2020. This enables parents to control their children's Internet consumption by restricting access - and developers are allowed to advertise on the platform to specific target groups. Lego is also pursuing a similar principle and in 2016 published Lego Life, a social media app for children that is moderated by parents.
So both companies already have experience with child safety. For their joint Metaverse project, safety is a key factor in gaining or maintaining the trust of the target group.
Attack on Meta's Metaverse
In addition to Lego, Epic Games is also working more and more closely with Sony. A recent $1 billion investment in Epic Games by the Japanese tech giant is aimed at creative spaces and events in the Metaverse, among other things.
Epic Games is thus positioning itself as a challenger to Meta's Metaverse vision. Together with strong new partners, all of whom have a very positive image among the target groups, interesting Metaverse concepts could emerge that advance the still quite hypothetical concept unencumbered by data and harassment scandals.
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