Facebook is rolling out Messenger Kids, its controversial chat app for those under 13, to countries outside of the US, as reported by CNET. The app has been widely criticized by advocacy groups that claim it is “harmful to children and teens.” Messenger Kids will be coming to Peru and Canada, and, for the first time, it will also be available in Spanish and French. Introduced last December, Messenger Kids allows parents to manage a child’s profile through their Facebook account and have control over who the child can contact. It contains no ads or in-app purchases, and it does not require a child use their real name. It skews toward letting kids video and text chat while offering kid-appropriate stickers, masks, and filters to decorate their content. Now, two parents can manage a child’s account, instead of one Although Facebook says the app is designed to be compliant with the Children’s Online Privacy and Protection Act (COPPA), there has been pressure from child development experts, health advocacy groups, educators, parents, and more, all calling for Facebook to shut the app down. The Campaign for a Commercial-Free Childhood voiced concerns in an open letter to Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg earlier this year, saying that “young children are simply not ready to have social media accounts,” and are “not old enough to navigate the complexities of online relationships.” In addition to the international expansion, Facebook also made some tweaks to Messenger Kids. Now, two parents can manage a child’s account, instead of one. The app also now presents a “pledge” for families that is seen when parents set up the account for their child. The pledge’s four points are “Be Kind,” “Be Respectful,” “Be Safe,” and “Have Fun,” and are supposed to be “guiding principles between parents and kids that encourage the responsible use of Messenger Kids.” The idea is that parents will have a discussion with their child about these tenets before access is handed over. Although Messenger Kids seemingly follows proper protocols — and there are certainly good uses for it, such as a child being able to chat with family members — many kids already have access to cellphones that can accomplish those connection needs. Messenger Kids appears to be grooming the next generation of Facebook users, and that may be concerning for some parents.<doc-sep>Image : Facebook Facebook’s messaging service for children has been widely criticized by child health advocates who have urged Mark Zuckerberg to delete the app altogether. But Facebook hasn’t scrapped the chat app for kids as young as six years old. Instead, it’s adding more features and extending its reach. Advertisement On Friday, Facebook announced it is rolling out Messenger Kids to Canada and Peru as well as making Spanish and French versions of the service available to all users. Facebook also announced a few new features, including a “Messenger Kids Pledge,” which Facebook describes as: “A pledge of guiding principles between parents and kids that encourage the responsible use of Messenger Kids: Be Kind, Be Respectful, Be Safe, and Have Fun.” It also came out with “Kindness Stickers,” which are “designed to inspire kindness towards others.” And, lastly, Facebook is going to roll out an “Appreciation Mission” soon. Facebook says this “interactive guide” will be part of the app’s missions section and is intended to “encourage kids to discover and express appreciation for their friends and family.” “We designed Messenger Kids from the ground up with elements that teach kids how to better understand and express their emotions in creative ways, encourage and promote healthy social behaviors, and deepen positive connections between kids and their close friends and families,” Facebook wrote in the post. It’s evident that Facebook wants its Messenger Kids service to play a role in the lives of developing minds. And it may seem like a noble cause, to foster a healthy outlet for self- expression and socializing with loved ones. But, according to an open letter to Zuckerberg that nearly 100 child health advocates threw their weight behind in January, social media and increased screen time are detrimental to the growth and well-being of young kids. “Messenger Kids is not responding to a need – it is creating one,” the letter states. Facebook wrote in its blog post on Friday that it is working with researchers and advisors on developing features “rooted in principles of social and emotional learning.” But it’s important to note the asterisk at the bottom of the post, which notes how “these researchers work in a paid capacity with Facebook.” They are hardly an unbiased third party. Facebook says it’s listening to parents who want a better social network option for their kids, but it’s unclear if Facebook is listening to those opposing such a service for young, impressionable minds. [VentureBeat]<doc-sep>Facebook’s kid-friendly messaging app, Messenger Kids, is expanding to its first countries outside the U.S. today, with launches in Canada and Peru. It’s also introducing French and Spanish versions of its app, and rolling out a handful of new features focused on promoting respect and empathy, including a “Messenger Kids Pledge” and something called “Kindness Stickers,” which are meant to inspire more positive emotions when communicating online. The stickers say things like “MY BFF” or “Well Done!” or “Best Artist,” and are designed to be placed on shared photos. Also helpful is the new “Messenger Kids Pledge,” which is designed for both parents and children to read together, and includes some basic guidelines about how to be behave online. For example, it reminds everyone to “be kind when you communicate,” and to “be respectful,” explaining also that when someone doesn’t respond right away, they may just be too busy. “Be safe” and “have fun” are also a part of the guidelines. This seems like a small addition, but it’s the kind of thing parents should already be doing with their kids when they introduce new technology – and many do not. Some parents don’t even know what apps kids are using, which has allowed those less secure apps to become hunting grounds for predators. Messenger Kids works differently, as it requires parental involvement. Kids can’t add any friends without parental approval, and the app can be managed directly from parents’ Facebook. While it’s understandable that people have a hard time trusting Facebook these days, there isn’t any viable alternative that allows kids to “practice” communicating or socializing online in a more controlled environment. Kids instead beg for apps aimed at adults and older teens, like Snapchat, Instagram, and Musical.ly – apps I personally won’t install for a “tween.” Messenger Kids at least gives kids a way to privately socialize with approved people – kids whose parents you know and trust, and family members on Facebook. They’re at an age where you can still look over their shoulder, and correct bad behavior as it arises. The alternative to using Messenger Kids is what a lot parents do – they refuse all social apps until kids reach a certain age, then throw them to the wolves on the internet. Is that really better? Despite its sandboxed nature, kids like Messenger Kids because it has the features they actually want from the adult-oriented apps – like photo filters and stickers. (If the app would please add Facebook’s new lip-sync feature so I could stop hearing the begs for Musical.ly on a daily basis, I’d be much appreciative.) Related to its push for kindness and respect, Messenger Kids will also soon roll out an interactive guide within its app called the “Appreciation Mission” which will encourage kids to discover and express appreciation for their friends and family. This will live in the “Mission” section of the app, where kids learn how to use features, like starting a video call or sending a photo. Facebook says it consults with the Yale Center for Emotional Intelligence and a global group of advisors on the development of the features focused on these principles of social and emotional learning. (The Yale Center is a paid advisor.) Come to think of it, a lot of adults could benefit from these sorts of features, too. Maybe Facebook and Twitter should add their own in-app kindness reminders, as well? Messenger Kids also added support for two parents to manage kids’ accounts, based on customer feedback. 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Yes, the major public clouds offer a lot. But what you may not know are the limitations, and how open clouds make the difference. Elevate your enterprise data technology and strategy at Transform 2021. Facebook is expanding its controversial Messenger Kids app beyond the U.S. and into Canada and Peru, the company announced today. Messenger Kids will now also be made available in Spanish and French in all three of its available markets. With well over 1 billion users, Messenger is one of the most popular messaging apps in the world. And one way Facebook has sought to increase its stickiness further is by opening the platform to kids via their own standalone app. Messenger Kids originally launched for kids aged 6 to 12 in the U.S. last December, starting with iOS devices. Earlier this year, Messenger Kids arrived on Android, and Facebook added a new “sleep mode” feature to the service a few months back. Parents install Messenger Kids on their child’s device, with the parent able to control settings via their own Facebook account. However, the app has courted significant controversy for encouraging children to use social networks at such a young age, while a report emerged this year highlighting the fact that many of the “experts” who had vetted the original Messenger Kids app were in fact funded by Facebook. Nonetheless, the Messenger Kids train thunders on, and the company is showing no signs of cutting the service — despite widespread concerns that digital devices and social media can have a detrimental impact on children’s emotional and cognitive development. But wait … Facebook has been paying attention to the outrage, and the social media giant has some additional news to share today. It has developed the Messenger Kids Pledge, which is a set of “guiding principles” aimed at parents and kids that “encourage the responsible use of Messenger Kids,” the company said in a blog post. So what does this involve, exactly? Well, it basically comes down to this — parents and kids are expected to agree to four points: Be Kind, Be Respectful, Be Safe, and Have Fun. Will this appease the Messenger Kids naysayers? In related news, Facebook has also introduced “kindness stickers” that are designed to “inspire kindness toward others.” And there’s more — Facebook will also soon launch a new “appreciation mission” feature within the app as an interactive guide “that will encourage kids to discover and express appreciation for their friends and family.” These new features will likely do little to garner hurrahs from concerned parents and child psychology experts around the world. But for parents who are excited about Messenger Kids, the company has a final piece of news that will probably be met with cheers. Up until now only one parent could control the settings within the Messenger Kids app, but beginning today, both parents will be able to control things from afar.