Russia pulls the plug on Roblox in LGBTQ crackdown

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00:00Russia pulls the plug on Roblox and LGBTQ crackdown.

00:04Russia has officially banned Roblox.

00:07The news comes via TASS, Russia's state-owned media,

00:10which reported that the country's communications agency

00:12flagged Roblox for containing LGBTQ content,

00:16which Russia classifies as extremist activity.

00:20Yes, you read that correctly.

00:22Rainbow avatars are now apparently a national security threat.

00:25Roblox often described as Minecraft's chaotic cousin

00:28with a thriving creator economy

00:30hosts a huge spectrum of player-made experiences,

00:33from military roleplay to pride-themed hangouts.

00:36That openness is exactly what Russia took issue with.

00:40The timing is especially awkward for Roblox,

00:43which has already spent the past year

00:44batting away safety scandals

00:46like their glitchy non-player characters.

00:49Investigations have revealed that Predators

00:51found ways to contact minors on the platform,

00:54and U.S. Attorneys General in Texas and Louisiana

00:56have opened probes into the company's handling of child safety.

01:00In response, Roblox announced a wave of protective measures,

01:04including mandatory facial verification for users

01:06who want to use chat starting in January.

01:09Because nothing says safe and fun digital playground,

01:12like scanning your face to tell a digital pet simulator

01:15you're over 13.

01:16Developers have also been told to flag games

01:19involving sensitive, social, political, or religious topics,

01:22so parents can choose whether younger kids can access them.

01:26The policy was meant to create transparency,

01:28but instead ignited backlash from groups

01:30like Outmaking Games and Women in Games,

01:33which accused Roblox of labeling legitimate discussions

01:36as controversial content.

01:38In an open letter,

01:39the groups urged Roblox to avoid empowering discrimination

01:42under the guise of parental controls.

01:45The ban is no small deal.

01:47According to app figures,

01:48Roblox has been downloaded an estimated 70 million times in Russia,

01:53with 8 million installs just this year.

01:56Now, millions of players are suddenly disconnected

01:58from their blocky digital lives,

02:00not because of gameplay issues, but geopolitics.

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