Carolina Martinez

Targeting Children Online Carolina Martinez

They usually try to lure people, that is, the games, to press the adverts. If you enter an app it can take up to three seconds and then an advert appears and you touch it and enter App Store … So I always, I sit and wait around 10 seconds before I dare to touch anywhere, because I can’t stand it. Anna, 12 years old Children’s internet usage takes place to a large extent in a commercial environment where advertising and the sale of virtual goods are ever-present parts of the online experience. This thesis contributes to a critical understanding of this media environment as spaces for children’s everyday life activities, and as spaces for commercial interests that seek to target children online The dissertation investigates questions such as: How do children view and engage with advertising in mobile games? What participatory opportunities are provided to children in virtual worlds, and how is children’s participation constrained by the commercial strategies? How do Swedish producers of childdirected online advertising represent themselves and their practices?