The Milan weekend dedicated to the advent of digital ended yesterday – March 17, 2019; national appointment followed by our eSportsActivity.com team
The “Parents Gaming Lab – The fascination of videogames” was very important and full of ideas, an in-depth event aimed at parents and teachers on the potential and risks associated with the videogame medium, organized by Vodafone Italia and Esl Italia in order to create a bridge between the various generations.
A success of analysis and debates addressed by the various experts present, including Dr. Emanuela Zaccone (www.emanuelazaccone.com), Marketing & Product Manager of TOK.tv, the social network for sports fans with headquarters in Silicon Valley.
“We defend idleness and free time as an important moment in the growth of children”, with these words – Emanuela – talks about her experience as a parent in an increasingly social and virtual world during the conference sessions at the Vodafone Theater, and interviewed by eSports Activity, she tells herself, talking about her passion for video games that has become a work in parallel with her daily parenthood.
1 – Emanuela, Gamer and mum, how and when did your passion for video games arise and how has your approach to the sector changed over time?
I honestly remember having always been interested in videogames, but I was forbidden, or rather, the consoles were forbidden to me. From that point of view my year 0 was 1999, when I was given the PlayStation for my 17th birthday. It doesn’t mean that I didn’t play before: I used to play at my friends’ house, on my computer and even at school (I attended an oratory that had a Street Fighter II arcade).
What has changed in these years is perhaps the awareness towards the medium, above all in terms of attention: I am strongly committed – and the same is true for social media – to make them understand its value, to destroy the false myths that revolve around videogames and to help make this sector better (not surprisingly, I’m also an Xbox Ambassador).
2 – The video game market, constantly evolving over time, today involves many young and less adults. A trend destined to change its parameters based on the generational change over the next few years. What do you expect from the future?
Certainly the emergence of new professional skills, especially with eSports: video games have not ceased to be games, but have also become an area in which to carve out one’s own “career” as professional players.
3 – Many parents fear the web of social media and games, seeing chat and internet interactions as a form of danger for their children. As a mother and expert in the virtual world, what advice do you feel you can dispense?
It was one of the hot topics of the Parents Gaming LAB. And the answer is simpler than you might think: accompany your children in these experiences. First of all make sure that they are suitable for them (there is a reason if the PEGI classification exists and if, for example, you provide both PEGI 12+), establish rules of use and set a good example. Don’t leave the digital education of your children to others: if you don’t understand, learn and maybe do it together.
4 – TOK.tv, the social network for sports fans with headquarters in Silicon Valley. A direct link between Italy and America managed through the network. Tell us about this experience and how technology and the internet can be an asset to preserve and improve at all costs
TOK.tv was born because we wanted to give back to the fans the thrill of watching a match together even if distant. To be clear – given that they talk about gaming – it is different but for the football fans of Real Madrid, FC Barcelona and Juventus, it is unique to create cohesion between them. Today we have about 37 million users from all over the world.
We have chosen to make TOK.tv a “liquid” company, or distributed if you prefer, in which everyone works remotely and is therefore free to organize. The result is a team with an excellent balance between work and private life and increased productivity.
Internet allows us to work, have fun, communicate with everyone and for this reason it must be preserved. Not surprisingly, on the thirtieth anniversary of the World Wide Web, Sir TIM Berners-Lee – who invented the web – launched the “For the web” campaign (https://fortheweb.webfoundation.org).
It would also be time to stop demonizing the medium and begin to recognize the responsibilities of each of us and the content we publish.
5 – Finally, what do you expect and what are the objectives of a Parents Gaming Lab – “The fascination of video games?
I hope that those who followed our panels brought home the knowledge that videogames are not evil. Which are a “real” and social dimension like others and which rather than keeping them should be understood and – why not? – also used to communicate with children and understand them better. But without forgetting its parenting function.
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