Mobile target: Protective parents
What age is too young for a cell phone? Services catering to the under-14 age group and their parents could be the next big driver of growth in the cell phone industry.
http://msn.com.com/2100-1035_22-6058756.html?part=msn-cnet&subj=ns_22-6058756&tag=tg_bz
Excerpts:
Disney, the omnipresent family entertainment brand, would target kids and their parents for a new cellular service, called Disney Mobile, which will launch in June.
Disney hasn't built its own cellular network but is instead leasing capacity from Sprint Nextel. This arrangement, often referred to as a mobile virtual network operator, or MVNO, setup, is a growing trend in the cell phone industry.
...
Aftab said parents interested in a service such as Disney's are the same ones who put their home computers in the living room or family room so they can monitor what content their kids access online.
"Once your kid leaves the house, you have no idea what he or she is doing with (the) cell phone," she said. "They could be downloading ring tones of orgasm sounds, for all you know. Or maybe they're being bullied by another kid through text messages. Disney is the first company to address these concerns."
...
Even though the big carriers' services and phones don't match the functionality of newcomer Disney Mobile, they still may have an edge over Disney. For one, most parents who'd even consider buying a cell phone for their kids are already customers of one of the big cell phone companies. It might be easier and more cost-effective for them to wait for new features to be added to their current provider's packages.
"Disney's offering is more comprehensive, in terms of parental control, than anything else I've seen on the market," said Julie Ask, an analyst at JupiterResearch. "But whether or not large numbers of parents subscribe to the Disney service may depend on pricing and the value of the services."
http://msn.com.com/2100-1035_22-6058756.html?part=msn-cnet&subj=ns_22-6058756&tag=tg_bz
Excerpts:
Disney, the omnipresent family entertainment brand, would target kids and their parents for a new cellular service, called Disney Mobile, which will launch in June.
Disney hasn't built its own cellular network but is instead leasing capacity from Sprint Nextel. This arrangement, often referred to as a mobile virtual network operator, or MVNO, setup, is a growing trend in the cell phone industry.
...
Aftab said parents interested in a service such as Disney's are the same ones who put their home computers in the living room or family room so they can monitor what content their kids access online.
"Once your kid leaves the house, you have no idea what he or she is doing with (the) cell phone," she said. "They could be downloading ring tones of orgasm sounds, for all you know. Or maybe they're being bullied by another kid through text messages. Disney is the first company to address these concerns."
...
Even though the big carriers' services and phones don't match the functionality of newcomer Disney Mobile, they still may have an edge over Disney. For one, most parents who'd even consider buying a cell phone for their kids are already customers of one of the big cell phone companies. It might be easier and more cost-effective for them to wait for new features to be added to their current provider's packages.
"Disney's offering is more comprehensive, in terms of parental control, than anything else I've seen on the market," said Julie Ask, an analyst at JupiterResearch. "But whether or not large numbers of parents subscribe to the Disney service may depend on pricing and the value of the services."
Jean
posted by t12cjc | 5:54 pm
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