- Meta is preparing to open its app 'Horizon Worlds' to teens as early as this month.
- Senators Ed Markey and Richard Blumenthal are calling on the company to halt plans for the app's release.
Two Democratic Senators are pressuring Meta to halt plans to open the Metaverse to teenagers by lowering the age limit to its "Horizon Worlds" app, criticizing the company's past handling of youth data and privacy.
In a joint letter to Meta founder and CEO Mark Zuckerberg, Senators Ed Markey and Richard Blumental demanded the company scrap plans to expand access to the app — a virtual reality program set in the Metaverse — for teens aged 13 to 17 as soon as this month. Currently, the app only allows users aged 18 and up.
"Meta's plan to target young people with offerings in the metaverse is particularly concerning in light of your consistent failures to protect young users," the Senators wrote. "With a documented track record of failure to protect children and teens, Meta has lost parents', pediatricians', policymakers', and the public's trust."
In a statement to Insider, a Meta spokesperson said its Quest VR platform — the virtual reality headset needed to access Horizon — "has always been designed for people ages 13+" and thus " it makes sense" for the company to expand to younger demographics.
"Teens are already spending time in a variety of VR experiences on Quest and we want to ensure that we can provide them with a great experience in Horizon Worlds as well, with age-appropriate tools and protections in place," a Meta spokesperson told Insider.
According to the Wall Street Journal, Meta plans to release the Horizon Worlds app to teens in order to expand its user base. In an internal memo cited by the Journal, Horizon vice president Gabriel Aul told staff improving user retention among youth users was a top priority.
"Today our competitors are doing a much better job meeting the unique needs of these cohorts," Aul wrote, per the Journal. "For Horizon to succeed we need to ensure that we serve this cohort first and foremost."
In their letter, Markey and Blumenthal harped on Meta's past endeavors regarding children and young adults, arguing that the company poses a threat to the well-being of American teens.
In just the last year, Meta has been hit with a barrage lawsuits that allege its platforms like Facebook and Instagram cause harm to children — including two which allege Instagram contributes to eating disorders in teens.
"Any strategy to invite young users into a digital space rife with potential harms should not be driven by a goal to maximize profit," the Senators wrote. "We call on you to immediately halt Meta's plan to bring teen users onto Horizon Worlds."
Sen. Markey has a track record of scrutinizing virtual reality, especially as it pertains to children. In February, he called on the Federal Trade Commission to investigate companies working to build apps in the Metaverse, specifically in regard to the privacy and security of kids.
Building the Metaverse — a fledgling virtual world which allows users to interact seamlessly in what Meta likens to a new internet — has cost the company billions, the Journal reported.
But Horizon Worlds, a flagship property of the Metaverse, has struggled to find and keep users, according to the Journal. Meta is shooting for one million active Horizon users by the end of the year, the Journal reported.