Designing regulated identity for children.
A reusable registration framework built for safety, consent, and scale.
CartoonNetwork.com needed a consistent registration system that could support children, teens, parents, and multiple digital properties without rebuilding compliance logic for every launch. As lead designer, I created a reusable identity framework that built COPPA compliance, age gating, parental consent, and error handling into the system itself — increasing registration by 15% while making every subsequent property launch safer and more consistent.
One framework. Every property. Consistent compliance.
A reusable identity system that reduced duplicate work, ensured consistent COPPA compliance, and increased registration across the platform.
User base across Cartoon Network's multiplayer and platform properties.
Full compliance with COPPA — parental consent, age gating, and policy handling built into the system from the start.
Registration patterns standardized across multiple properties — built once, no duplicate work per launch.
Increase in registration following the identity flow redesign.
Building compliance into the system — once — for every property.
CartoonNetwork.com operated across multiple digital properties — games, shows, community features — each requiring user registration. Every property had different compliance requirements depending on whether users were under or over 13 under COPPA.
A shared framework created an opportunity to make registration more consistent across properties, reduce duplicate work, and ensure that age gating, parental consent, and COPPA requirements were handled correctly from the start.
The opportunity went beyond registration. It was a systems challenge: build COPPA compliance, age gating, and parental consent into the design framework itself, so every property could launch with the right patterns from day one.
We could have designed registration flows property by property, which would have been faster for a single launch. Instead, we invested in a reusable framework that built age gating, parental consent, and COPPA logic into the system itself — reducing compliance risk and creating a shared standard for future properties.
What we set out to build
- One reusable registration framework deployable across all CN properties
- Age-gating and parental consent built in — not bolted on
- Distinct flows for under-13, over-13, and parent registration
- Error states and edge cases handled at the system level, not per-property
Why it mattered
- COPPA violations carry significant legal and financial risk
- Inconsistent registration damaged trust and increased drop-off
- Rebuilding per property was expensive and error-prone
- A compliant, consistent experience supported growth — not just compliance
Three user types. Each with different compliance requirements and registration needs.
Research defined the full landscape of users who would interact with the registration system — not just the child registering, but the parent consenting, and the older user whose experience shouldn't feel like a children's product.
The same registration form couldn't serve all three user types well. Children under 13 needed protection and parental handoff. Children over 13 needed autonomy. Parents needed clear consent controls. A single flow would compromise all three.
Users & Goals — three distinct user types: children under 13, users over 13, and parents. Each had different compliance requirements, consent needs, and registration paths.
Supporting research artifacts
A template system that handled compliance by default.
The wireframes document every step of the registration system — from template structure through account creation, profile setup, EULA and parental notification, to login and password error states. Each step was designed as a reusable template component that could be assembled differently per property while guaranteeing consistent compliance outcomes.
We built the compliance logic into the template system — not into individual page designs. Age detection triggered the correct flow automatically. Parental consent surfaced at the right step. Error states were consistent. No property team had to make compliance decisions at design time.
Template types & guidelines — the reusable component system defining how each registration step could be assembled across different Cartoon Network properties.
Create Your Free Account — the registration step where age detection routes users into the correct path, including parental consent for under-13 users.
EULA & Parental Notifications — the under-13 consent step, designed so parents could verify and activate the child's account with clear safety and policy context.
Supporting template artifacts
What This Framework Changed
Building compliance into the design system — not individual projects — meant every property launched with correct age gating, parental consent flows, and COPPA-compliant patterns from day one. No duplicate work. No compliance gaps. No inconsistency across the portfolio.
It proved a principle that carried into every subsequent platform project: regulated identity design doesn't slow delivery. The right system built once makes every subsequent launch faster, safer, and more consistent.