Company Statements

By
ABC News
December 6, 2009, 10:45 PM ET
3 min read

— -- Read the full statements from Gaia Online, Nickelodeon and Apple below.

Gaia Online

Gaia Online is a virtual world and online social community for teens and young adults. As with any online social site, it is essential that Gaia Online have specific rules and regulations in place to protect users and uphold the site experience. Users are required to adhere to the site's Terms and Conditions - in the case that they don't, Gaia Online has hundreds of moderators that actively evaluate and remove questionable content, and those who post it, from the site. Gaia Online's staff is committed to keeping the site safe for teens. We strictly adhere to the COPPA guidelines by prohibiting users under the age of 13 from registering on our site. Gaia Online works along-side with worldwide law enforcement agencies and the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children (NCMEC) and participates with the safe internet practices prescribed by the Family Online Safety Institute (FOSI).

Gaia Online members can report possible cases of abuse and harassment at any time; they can simply click a "report" button, fill out a report for the situation, and a notification will be dispatched to moderators.

It's important to remember this is the Internet we're talking about and no amount of technology and education can absolutely ensure proper behavior. We have taken every reasonable step to ensure that Gaia Online is safe and that breaches of safety or privacy are swiftly reacted to. Still, users should approach socialization online with the same consideration and caution with which they approach real-world interactions. The same rules and common sense that apply to dealing with strangers in the real-world, also apply to the online environment.

-- Beatrice Spaine, Chief Marketing Officer

Nickelodeon

Nickelodeon has grown over the last 30 years to serve an audience not only of kids, but also teens, young adults and families. Addicting Games is the number-one casual gaming site on the web, and is linked to Nick.com because it is part of our brand. There is a notification on Nick.com to signal when a user is leaving for Addicting Games, and as we always have, we will continue to constantly review our content and navigation tools to provide the best and most entertaining environment for our audiences.

Apple

Parents can easily add parental controls to iPhone by tapping "Settings" to ensure their kids see only what they want them to see."