We know that parents aren’t too fond of the in-app purchasing system on the iTunes App Store as more often than not it leads to high credit card bills when you least expect it. For the most part the kids don’t know what they are doing and probably think if the app is free, so is everything else in it! While there are ways to curb in-app spending, such as through parental controls and etc., kids’ iPad magazine Timbuktu might have a more creative solution.
Previously the app made the use of in-app purchases a bit too easy for kids, and all kids had to do was pop the little virtual bubbles to make purchases. Naturally many parents weren’t too pleased about this, and with the growing concern over such abuse, the magazine has rethought their in-app purchasing model. Basically parents can now subscribe to a plan in which they can pre-purchase content ahead of time, with their kids free to explore and discover the content themselves and “purchase” them. This helps ensure that kids are still given access to the content without overspending.
Like we said there are other ways to go about preventing in-app purchases, but it’s good to see that some developers have taken it upon themselves to help prevent parents from receiving credit card bill shock.