Do you know Candy Crush?  It’s a game app, and its everywhere.  But what’s really got the European Commission piqued is that even though the app is supposed to be “Free”, players come up again and again in the middle being asked to pay for virtual enhancements.

In-program buying can be especially problematic in children’s games. Kids have always been proven to run up big fees on credit cards their parents have linked with their phones.

Europe is addressing these “secret” in-game expenses, which European Union Justice Commissioner Viviane Reding says damage Europeans’ self-confidence in the program marketplace and stop the marketplace from reaching its “tremendous potential,” according to Wired U.K.

The European Commission intends to undertake four principal problems through the talk:

1.  Games advertised as “free” shouldn’t mislead consumers regarding the actual costs required.

2.  Games must not be use “direct exhortations” that get kids to produce purchases.

3.  Purchases shouldn’t be a part of a program’s default option settings.

4.  Consumers ought to have the ability to contact programmers via e-mail about questionable purchases made in other programs along with games.

An amazing wwenty-three million parents joined a class-action lawsuit a year ago over how simple it may be for children to make in-game purchases.  Even though passwords protect parents from unwanted purchases by their kids, the problem is that after entering one password the connection becomes open for up to 15 minutes allowing buying without passwords, enabling children to spend a lot of funds on in- without understanding program purchases.

Apple still gives the 15-minute window after inputting a password, but now has been compelled to notify users that the time window exists.

(Photo credit: Josh Bancroft/Creative Commons)