Correspondence- Non-Agenda - Laserfiche WebLink

Home Browse Search

I. About Fairplay Fairplay is the leading independent watchdog of the children's media and marketing industries. We are committed to building a world where kids can be kids, free from the false promises of marketers and the manipulations of Big Tech. Our advocacy is grounded in the overwhelming evidence that child-targeted marketing—and the excessive screen time it encourages— undermines kids' healthy development. Through corporate campaigns and strategic regulatory filings, Fairplay and our partners have changed the child-targeted marketing and data collection practices of some of the world's biggest companies. In 2021, we led a large international coalition of parents, advocates, and child development experts to stop Meta from releasing a version of Instagram for younger children.' Our 2018 Federal Trade Commission complaint against Google for violating the Children's Online Privacy Protection Act (COPPA) led to the 2019 FTC settlement that required Google to pay a record fine and to limit data collection and targeted advertising on child- directed content on YouTube.2 With our partners at the Center for Digital Democracy, we have filed other requests for investigation at the FTC that remain pending. We have documented, for example, that Google Play recommends apps for young children that violate COPPA and uses unfair monetization techniqueS;3 that TikTok has not complied with the 2019 FTC Consent Decree that it was violating COPPA;4 and that Prodigy, a popular online math game assigned to millions of elementary school students across the country, uses manipulative design to unfairly promote expensive subscriptions to children.' Fairplay also leads the Designed with Kids in Mind Coalition, which advocates for regulations that would require operators to make the best interests of children a primary consideration ' Brett Molina and Terry Collins, Facebook postponing Instagram for kids amid uproarfrom parents, lawmakers, USA Today(Sept.27,2021), 17ttas. www.u.ssatoda .corn/stor tech 202� 09 2% insta ram-I<iids-version-a a cl7uldrei7 au.sse a88�42a00� . .................../... ................................................................................X............................A......................... . ........................./.............................../.............../................. ............................f;...........................................................................................................p.............................................................p........................../....................................................................... . z Campaign for a Commercial-Free Childhood (now Fairplay) and Center for Digital Democracy, Request to Investigate Google's YouTube Online Service and Advertising Practices for Violating the Children's Online Privacy Protection Act,Counsel for Center for Digital Democracy and Campaign for a Commercial-Free Childhood before the Federal Trade Commission (filed April 2,2018), 17ttps.//fair playrorl<iids.orp advocates-say-goo les-�roustuslae- Y.!.p..I.�!:tt'..s..:.fed .P:: ..I..:: .I..U... .r: ..!...s..:.:i�rivacy..law/. s Campaign for a Commercial-Free Childhood (now Fairplay)and Center for Digital Democracy, Request to Investigate Google's Unfair and Deceptive Practices in Marketing Apps for Children,Counsel for Center for Digital Democracy and Campaign for a Commercial-Free Childhood before the Federal Trade Commission (filed Dec. 12, 2018 17ttas. fairala forl<iids.or. a s which oo le-rates-safe-Iaids-vioVate-their-. rivac and-exaose them-other- ), .................../... ....................l...............y.........................................................'./...........p..p................................................f;...............f;................................................................................................................................................................................p............................X............................................Q.................................................................................................. 17 a rrri s/. ..................................... 4 Campaign for a Commercial-Free Childhood (now Fairplay)and Center for Digital Democracy, Complaint and Request for Investigation of TikTok for Violations of the Children's Online Privacy Protection Act and Implementing Rule,Counsel for Campaign for a Commercial-Free Childhood and Center for Digital Democracy before the Federal Trade Commission (filed May 14,2020), 17„G;teas.//fairDIli foil<ids.orf/wp- r o7„ /.?.:!..p..p..d..�.122.�:2./..2.`-.-�Z`1..!..�<.......:�.ph.......a p..isl!..pI ..!..! t"..P.Af. 5 Campaign for a Commercial-Free Childhood (now Fairplay), Request for Investigation of Deceptive and Unfair Practices by the Edtech Platform Prodigy,Campaign for a Commercial-Free Childhood before the Federal Trade Commission (filed Feb. 19,2020), 17„GG„p„s,//( „i_rp1a„yfc rl<lids,o g/pupa, cou7i i7t/u,p,�loads/2021/02/r)rodi w_ c�ir a,l, i7t_Fela2l.pdf. Testimony of Josh Golin, Fairplay, February 14, 2023 2