Microsoft have recently announced that it has created a panel directed at consumers with an aim to educate families on how to enjoy safe interactive entertainment in the household.
For those that don"t know, earlier this year Microsoft launched a website and initiative called "Get Game Smart" that has been put in place to educate parents on entertainment devices, like games consoles or personal computers. The website set up at GetGameSmart.com comes with information and resources on how a parent can enjoy and understand and manage the time their kids spend gaming through such things as competitions and agreements on how to make their habits safer.
As part of this goal that Microsoft has set, they have set up a panel labelled "The Get Game Smart Ambassadors" who are based around the United States in 8 cities.
10 teenagers and their parents were chosen through an internet campaign on the Get Game Smart website where they were able to each submitted a short video of themselves.
Through the website other families were then able to watch the submitted videos and then were able vote as to who out of the participating teen-parent teams would be chosen with an aim to educate other families through the interactive web site, their blogs and on-line social communities. The Get Game Smart Ambassadors will be able to give and share their own perspectives on gaming and other concerns that arise during an age where children are spending so much of their time in the on-line space.
Microsoft hopes that through such activities parents and their children will come to an understanding over how they manage their gaming time and what content is being played, and hopefully give families these tools to help them stay safe.
The Teen-Parent Ambassadors will be sharing their own tips and advice on how to maintain healthy and safe gaming environment for families, some of the advice shared includes making sure parents and their children understand each other and talk about their gaming habits, making sure they put other more sociable activities before games and that parents should understand the parental controls and ratings assigned to games.
Robbie Bach, president of the Entertainment & Devices Division at Microsoft, understands the troubles with how gaming is being perceived and the lack of information on the subject for families "As a parent myself, I understand we tend to turn to other parents for advice on the suitability of video games or other digital entertainment for our children,"
He adds, "By working hand in hand with this group of parents and teens, we hope to inspire a more productive dialogue with families, communities, the media and the industry around healthy and balanced media use."
Mcrosoft keeping up with the latest trends has also set up other ways to get information away from the main site, you can find updates, tips and information about upcoming competitions at their Twitter page or join them on Facebook.