Australian Users -- Problem with Neopets

[Alex]

That's on in a couple of hours, correct?

I didn't watch it (as I wasn't aware that this would be featured), but I'm responding to the article in question. If you want, I could PM you the letter I'm planning on sending once it's finished, and if you think there's anything which needs to be added as a result of watching the actual show, I'll add it in.

[Medusa]

That's on in a couple of hours, correct?

I didn't watch it (as I wasn't aware that this would be featured), but I'm responding to the article in question. If you want, I could PM you the letter I'm planning on sending once it's finished, and if you think there's anything which needs to be added as a result of watching the actual show, I'll add it in.

Its on in an hour and thirty minutes. If you'd like I can always PM you any notes I take

[Qanda]

Under the rules of the McDonalds-endorsed game, players who don't win enough points gambling to buy food actually have to send their Neopets to a 'virtual soup kitchen'.

As mentioned, there are many ways to earn neopoints to buy food, many of which don't require gambling. You can pick up omelettes and jellies to feed your pet also, and not necessarily have to send them to the soup kitchen. There are no rules forcing players to send their pets to the soup kitchen or the "orphanage", and pets don't die or get taken away if they get too hungry.

[Alex]

That's on in a couple of hours, correct?

I didn't watch it (as I wasn't aware that this would be featured), but I'm responding to the article in question. If you want, I could PM you the letter I'm planning on sending once it's finished, and if you think there's anything which needs to be added as a result of watching the actual show, I'll add it in.

Its on in an hour and thirty minutes. If you'd like I can always PM you any notes I take

Yes please, I'd appreciate that

Qanda - that's a good point, and it's one that I've already planned to bring up in my letter.

[Shellie]

I'm currently creating a online petition and i was wondering when its complete I could have your opinions on the text before it's made public and able to be signed? I'll put it up in an edit here as soon as i've finished.

[ocean_wave]

I think it's about time. I never thought those gambling games were appropriate for a children's site anyway, they are too close to the real thing. It projects the wrong idea about gambling to kids who don't know any better, its morally wrong. I'm really glad that someone has finally taken a stand, if this forces tnt to remove them then the site would be alot better. And it would not lose its appeal without these unnessesary negative influences, it has too many other wonderful things

[Alex]

*sigh*

ocean_wave, please don't take offence to what I'm about to say.

I was 11 when I joined the site. I played the gambling games. I have no gambling tendencies. I still don't even get how to play poker

As I've already stated, parents teach their children how to play card games. Many of these games are ones which are gambling. How is this different to Neopets? The only difference is that pixels are teaching the game.

I've mentioned other reasons too, but I'd rather not repeat myself. Sounding like a broken record doesn't sound all that appealing to me


Shellie - I've already told you that I think it's a good idea, and I'm going to sign it as soon as it's done. I agree with posting it here first, just so that you can get a second (or third) opinion.

[Qanda]

I think it's about time. I never thought those gambling games were appropriate for a children's site anyway, they are too close to the real thing. It projects the wrong idea about gambling to kids who don't know any better, its morally wrong. I'm really glad that someone has finally taken a stand, if this forces tnt to remove them then the site would be alot better. And it would not lose its appeal without these unnessesary negative influences, it has too many other wonderful things

At least they should just limit it from younger kids. And to me Neopets would lose a lot of appeal if its luck and chance games were taken off.

[Jasujo]

Hmm, it might be best if only members from Australia signed the petition. That way the people who are directly involved are signing it and it's not just another petition filled with random signatures. It's up to you, though.

[Medusa]

For anyone writing a complaint or petition, there are plenty of Boards currently on Neopets buzzing about the entire issue, they might help to give you all a few more ideas. Some things aren't put very professionally even when an attempt is made but the ideas may still be there.

This was an interesting one:
http://www.neopets.com/neoboards/topic. ... c=40146123

Last edited by Medusa on Wed Oct 13, 2004 9:31 am, edited 1 time in total.

[Shellie]

Okay my little petition thing is not going too well...... so far i've got...

The articles published and/or aired by the Herald Sun and Today Tonight on Wednesday, October 13 with regards to the virtual pet internet site are mostly factual and a definite misrepresentation of the site.

I've also got a quote from the Herald Sun that I agree with...

"There's a number of games you can play on that website. It's an interactive website, it's not a reality game,"

And this one from the today tonight story...

As Michelle's son Harley explains, you need to gamble to raise points to feed your virtual Neopets. He says if you don't gamble up enough points to feed your pet, it goes to the "orphanage".

It gets worse. Under the rules of the McDonalds-endorsed game, players who don't win enough points gambling to buy food actually have to send their Neopets to a 'virtual soup kitchen'.

Edit:

The articles published and/or aired by the Herald Sun and Today Tonight on Wednesday, October 13 with regards to the virtual pet internet site 'neopets.com' are not factual and a definite misrepresentation of the site.

We here believe that the restrictions now placed upon the Australian members of Neopets.com are unreasonable and brought on by false claims.

Give us back our freedom to play games without restrictions.



Sincerely, The Undersigned

taaadaaa...




What do you think?

JasEdit: Please do not double post. If you were the last poster and you want to add more, use the "edit" button in the top right of your post. Thank you very much.

<i>ShellieEdit</i> - My apologies to the mods btw

[Alex]

Right, I've nearly finished my letter to Today Tonight, after getting a ton of advice from Jas. This is what I've got so far:

To Whom It May Concern:

I am writing in regards to the report that appeared on your show on October 13, 2004 – ‘Gambling Toy a loser for McDonalds’. I would like to point out the many flaws in your report, and the facts which are downright untrue.

I have been a Neopets user for close on 4 years. In that time, I have become an established user of that site. I have played a variety of games, but they have not influenced me or swayed me to ‘gamble’.

The report, located here (http://seven.com.au/todaytonight/story/?id=16887), is clearly poorly researched. Several of these facts are half-truths, with a couple of them having no truth to them whatsoever.
“As Michelle's son Harley explains, you need to gamble to raise points to feed your virtual Neopets. He says if you don't gamble up enough points to feed your pet, it goes to the "orphanage".
This is false on two counts. Firstly, if the proper research was conducted, it would be found that gambling is not the only way of raising points. There are other forms of games, ranging from easy to very difficult, a stockmarket, methods of buying and reselling, and items which are a result of ‘Random Events’.
Furthermore, the claim about the “orphanage” is entirely false. There is no orphanage on Neopets. There is however a Pound, but it is not necessary to send your pet to that if you do not have enough NeoPoints. Additionally, it is optional to send your pet to the pound; it does not just up and ‘go’ there.

Continuing on, there are more false claims in the article.

“…players who don't win enough points gambling to buy food actually have to send their Neopets to a 'virtual soup kitchen'.”

Again, this is not true. Players do not have to send their Neopets to the soup kitchen. It is, in reality, only available to players who have less than 2000 NeoPoints, total. Not everyone is able to make use of this, only the new players who are trying to establish themselves. There are also two sources of free food daily, the Omelette, and the Giant Jelly. If this story was thoroughly researched, these facts would have been known. The large majority of Neopets users are aware of these two places, and they are linked to from the yellow sidebar as a result of the rotating banners.

As a long time user of Neopets.com, I have found it to be educational, as well as a source of fun. There is a large variety of games – which do not include gambling – as well as a number of shops.

Users have the option to create their own shop, and are able to price their items at a price of their choice. This helps children and teenagers become aware of the practices of the real world, and prepare them for what lies ahead of them.

As previously mentioned, Neopets has a stockmarket. While some may argue that this is just another way of teaching children bad habits, I disagree. As with other things, it helps children to become aware of things surrounding them every day. They are able to buy and purchase stocks, look up information about them, including the history and market trends, and with time, they work out which methods work and which don’t – all without risking actual money.

Another educational game is Plushie Tycoon. Mimicking the real world, users are given a set amount of ‘money’ each month. The aim is to buy materials, create plushies, and sell them, while creating a profit. At the end of each month, if the user has managed to make an overall profit, they are awarded a trophy, giving them a sense of achievement.

Several games on the Neopets site have been blocked to Australian users as a result of this report. Among these are the Tombola and the Scratchcard Kiosk. The Island Tombola is considered to be a sort of lucky dip – a free one, at that. There is no connection between this and gambling, yet it was still removed from the site. Many users are upset about this, as the Tombola is one of the ‘dailies’ that regular users do, and it is a chance to win free and rare items.

There is no harm to the Scratchcard Kiosk being on the site, however that too was removed. Users have the option to buy a scratchcard, and can either scratch it, or sell it for a profit. While it may be perceived as a method of gambling, many users do not scratch the card, instead preferring to sell it. This is not possible in real life.

Obviously, I need to finish it off. But is there anything that I've missed, or that needs changing?

[Shellie]

your letter is absolutly fabby!!!!

[Alex]

Thanks. I'm also going to put in a link that SL recommended to me, an article on PPT.

I'm pretty sure I've got it all covered, but I'll wait until Medusa watches the show just in case I missed anything.

I'm still open to suggestions if there's anything to improve though

[hallucinating]

I'm pretty sure they've taken down all the betting games temporarily, until they can put the age restriction on them. They'll be back eventually.

Though I agree that the Australian media is jumping on this bandwagon and trying to make the 'scandal' into something huge. Which is unnecessary. Perhaps they had nothing better to write about.