Wikipedia
KidZui was a web browser designed for children developed by KidZui, Inc. The KidZui browser used a Zooming User Interface paradigm to make browsing easier for children. Search results appeared as scaled down images of websites, videos, and pictures that children click on to zoom in and see content. Children can also browse by category without typing search terms. The KidZui browser did not access the open Internet. KidZui uses teachers and parents to screen content and maintains a database of approved URLs. The KidZui browser could only access URLs in the approved database. Children built avatars called Zuis to represent themselves online. They earned points for web browsing and used points to gain levels and buy clothes and accessories for their Zuis. Children could share KidZui content with friends online. To add a friend online, children needed to know the friends Zui name. There was no online directory of Zui names, so children needed to get their friends Zui names offline in order to add them. Friends also needed to be approved by parents before they become available in the browser. KidZui also tracked children’s Internet usage and sends reports to their parents on what their children looked at online.
KidZui began development on the product in the summer of 2006. After beta testing, KidZui was offered to the general public on March 19, 2008. The KidZui browser and basic reports for parents are free. KidZui makes revenue through a paid membership program. Membership gives kids additional features like more available clothing and accessories for Zuis, more background and themes, and the ability to get to higher levels with points. Membership gives parents more reporting capabilities to track their children’s online activity, and more ways to customize the KidZui browser for their children.
KidZui was designed for children between the ages of 3 and 12 years old. KidZui had a focus on children’s online safety, but they also tried to expand the content available to children online. Rather than solely using filters, KidZui trained and enlisted parents and teachers to search out content that is appropriate for children even if it was not designed expressly for children. Websites that had been reviewed and approved by KidZui could carry a KidZui seal of approval that indicate the site’s content is appropriate for children. Websites that carried the seal agree to abide by KidZui’s content guidelines. Kid Zui was also a prize on the 3rd round on the Nickelodeon game show BrainSurge.
In August 2014, LeapFrog purchased KidZui. The terms of the deal were not disclosed.