Sure they do. It doesn't seem to be a problem for credit card companies. Even Gmail seems to want an active phone line before setting up a simple email account. The reality is Facebook turns a blind eye to underage users. Those children are Facebook's bread-n-butter. I am still shocked they haven't been hit with fines or sanctions for continually violating the U.S. federal law that states people under 13 (or is it 14?)can't be monitored online.

Easier said, than done. Without paid body guards it is impossible to monitor someone 24/7.

Fuck you and your ivory tower. Having been bullied to the point of considering suicide several times when I was a kid, I can tell you without a doubt, the bullies are accessories to the death. A human can only take so much abuse before they crack; juvenille minds even more so.

I have zero tolerence for bullies. They should be treated like criminals.

I have seen it before. They will put in all their hopes and angst, only to find that the text reads: "Don't forget to drink your Ovaltine".

Is there anything that bacon doesn't make better?.....mmm bacon...

Maybe that company that sells ringtones is really a front for the CIA/NSA? That's what I would do if I were them. Pretend to be an advertiser whilst collecting/building profiles.

Yeah, because watching some ubernerd executing commandline scripts in a terminal makes for great television. :)

There is a saying the goes something like "don't attribute to malice which can be explained by stupidity".

I wonder if their decision is based on my twist on that saying "don't attribute to kindness that which can be explained by avoiding liability and bad press". Perhaps they dont want to be caught showing ads to the first person who gets hit by a bus because his/her focus was on the display watching a sexy ad and not the world around them?

I am a long time gamer and hardware/software nerd. I like the idea of a new console, but this not live long. I just dont see a market. The big three have their new consoles coming out which means the previous gen will be around $100.

They need to come out of the gate with must have games that all the kids talk about.If they dont get some pro developers on board the oyu will die a quick death. Games sell consoles, not the other way around.

I could just be ill informed, but why do pundits, media, and government officials keep trying to push the idea that you need giant military organizations to lauch an attack (ala nuclear weapon building).

Is it not completely possible that one intelligent man, $300 laptop, and an internet connection be just as "deadly" as any country's electronic warfare unit?

And why this old relic of an idea of a cold war. I am sure that there are many individual actors that are in active attack mode.

I would mod you up if I had points. Agreed, finally something sensible from a Missouri politician that doesn't make us the laughing stock of the country.

They already do this. See my comment below about the "trading cards" system. In the EA hockey game there is another mode called "be a pro". Yes, if you want to get better equipment or stats you have to purchase with real money or use the hard to earn in-game points.

The digial age started in the 1950's. What we have here is greed. The blood suckers smell fresh meat. And people like you just roll over and take it. It's not the digital age coming, its the apathy and ignorance of the populous.

I know you are tyring to be fair, but your comment enrages me.

Oh...thank goodness. I was worried that when i spent $60+tax on the game, that I was going to get everything that was on the disk. Glad to know at least some of it stays locked behind a pay gate!

I was lucky enough to be around for the early days of PC gaming. I remember when the manual actually told you to make a backup of the floppy. (for you young viewers, manuals were small booklets that used to come with games giving you tips, backstory, art..)

I guess it's good that I am nearing 40 and don't get into gaming as nearly as I used to. This stuff is just turning me off completely.

Considering the typical audience here, there are probably not a lot of you that play EA's NHL (yearly susbscription game). They have already been testing the waters for this from at least 2011 when they indroduced a mode of play called "hockey ultimate team". In this mode you build a team by using "cards". The cards actually come in foil packs that you can buy (all virtual of course). They offer a way to pay for the packs with earned in-game points or real-world money. My son plays the NHL13 version of this game and it is obvious that the system is entirely designed to get you to need to buy more packs of cards to continue paying.

As expected the good hockey players are "rares" (and i mean really rare), and you continually need to feed contract cards and injury repair cards to keep playing. The amount of points required to get the medium and larger packs are so high it is difficult if not impossible for a weaker player to ever purchase with earned points. I'm a software engineer, I see the patterns and thresholds and how they are clearly designed to maximize the need for more "cards". it is completely obvious to me; my son however is too naive to see this....as are probably many other people under the age of 20 or 30. And that is why these microtransactions are "popuar". Mom drops $20 into the kids account and he blows it on virtual garbage. (I refuse to allow my son to buy with real money)

F**k EA. F**k the industry for....well...becoming an industry with the corporate greed that comes with it.

\end-rant