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Roblox is a global phenomenon, hugely popular with kids of all ages. It\u2019s a platform where users can use the Roblox Studio to create games and upload them for other players to either play for free or purchase. It\u2019s so popular that popstar Nicki Minaj used it to promote her latest album<\/a>.<\/p>\n However, Roblox has a reputation for taking the labor of its audience and using it to make staggering profits (and $3bn in revenue<\/a>) by making the exchange rate between Robux and real money extremely unfavorable. The YouTube channel People Make Games (PMG) highlighted this in an investigation in 2021<\/a> that showed the unsavory side of Roblox.<\/p>\n The company\u2019s CEO David Baszucki recently told The Verge that \u201cObviously everyone wants to keep kids safe<\/a>,\u201d but doubt will certainly be cast on their intentions after a conversation between Roblox Studio head Stefano Corazza and Eurogamer<\/a> at GDC.<\/p>\n In response to a question about the exploitative nature of its operations, Corazza said he didn\u2019t see it as exploitation. He emphasized the potential for earning and the fact that people can use Roblox to learn to code\u201d<\/p>\n \u201d I don\u2019t know, you can say this for a lot of things, right? Like, you can say, \u2018Okay, we are exploiting, you know, child labor,\u2019 right? Or, you can say: we are offering people anywhere in the world the capability to get a job, and even like an income. So, I can be like 15 years old, in Indonesia, living in a slum, and then now, with just a laptop, I can create something, make money, and then sustain my life.<\/em><\/p>\n \u201cThere\u2019s always the flip side of that, when you go broad and democratised \u2013 and in this case, also with a younger audience,\u201d he continued. \u201cI mean, our average game developer is in their 20s. But of course, there\u2019s people that are teenagers \u2013 and we have hired some teenagers that had millions of players on the platform.<\/em><\/p>\n \u201cFor them, you know, hearing from their experience, they didn\u2019t feel like they were exploited! They felt like, \u2018Oh my god, this was the biggest gift, all of a sudden I could create something, I had millions of users, I made so much money I could retire.\u2019 So I focus more on the amount of money that we distribute every year to creators, which is now getting close to like a billion dollars, which is phenomenal.\u201d<\/em><\/p>\n These statements, when contrasted with what PMG found in their investigation, and the exchange rate between Robux and dollars (1000 Robux cashes out at $3.50 but costs $12.50 to purchase) have raised doubts that Roblox truly understands the nature or scope of the concerns some have about child exploitation.<\/p>\n As Baszucki begins to meet with lawmakers and legislators in Washington to discuss child safety, it remains to be seen what changes will come to the platform and how its creators are compensated, if any. Until then, there is no war in Ba Sing Se.<\/p>\nRecent statements by Roblox<\/h2>\n