Meta Lowers the Minimum Age For its Quest Headsets From 13 to 10

Facebook-parent Meta has announced its plans to lower the minimum age requirement for its virtual reality headsets, allowing children as young as 10 years old to use the devices.

This decision comes despite pressure from lawmakers who have urged the company not to market VR services to younger users.

In a blog post, Meta stated that parents will be able to create accounts for their 10-year-old children on the Quest 2 and Quest 3 headsets later this year.

To ensure safety and parental consent, preteens will need approval from their parents to set up an account and download apps on the VR device.

Meta also emphasized that it will provide age-appropriate experiences by recommending suitable apps based on children’s ages.

The company highlighted the wide range of engaging and educational content available on its platform, with the majority of apps rated for ages 10 and up.

Meta’s decision to lower the minimum age requirement comes as social media companies, including Meta, face increasing scrutiny over their impact on young users.

Concerns have been raised about the potential harm to teens’ mental health and exposure to harmful content. Lawmakers and parents have specifically expressed apprehension about the use of VR and Meta’s vision of the “metaverse” by teenagers and children.

Earlier this year, Democratic senators urged Meta to suspend its plan to offer Horizon Worlds, the company’s flagship VR app, to teens aged 13 to 17, citing concerns about potential harm to physical and mental health.

Despite the criticism, Meta proceeded with its plan, allowing teenagers to use Horizon Worlds. This decision further fueled objections from lawmakers and civil society groups.

In response to parents’ concerns, Meta outlined several measures in its blog post to address safety and privacy. Parents will have the ability to set time limits and enforce breaks for their preteens using the VR headsets.

Accounts for users under 13 will be set to private, and their active status on apps will be hidden by default, unless parents choose to change these settings.

Meta also enables content casting from its VR headsets to TV or phone screens, giving parents the ability to monitor their children’s activities.

Meta assured that it will not serve ads to users in this age group, and parents will have the choice to determine whether their child’s data can be used to improve Meta’s services.

The company also confirmed that Horizon Worlds will remain restricted to users aged 13 and older in the United States and Canada (and 18 and older in Europe) when preteens are allowed to create parent-managed accounts on the headsets later this year.

Meta’s virtual reality headsets and Horizon Worlds represent CEO Mark Zuckerberg’s vision for the future of the internet, where users can interact with each other in virtual spaces resembling real life.

However, the company has faced challenges in attracting a mainstream audience for these products.