Walt Disney Co, the media
company built on family entertainment, in June will start selling wireless phone
service that gives parents control over children's usage.
The phones,
which use Sprint Nextel Corp's PCS network, will allow parents to track voice,
text, picture and download usage, Disney Internet Group President Steve
Wadsworth said this week. Parents will be able to determine when children can
use the phone and with whom.
Disney, the second-biggest US media company, is targeting 20 million to 30
million US children ages 10 to 15, Wadsworth said.
The service is the second agreement between Burbank, California-based Disney
and Sprint Nextel, the No. 3 US mobile-phone services provider. At the Super
Bowl in February, Disney debuted its ESPN Mobile service that offers sports,
news and statistics as well as audio and video.
"The real focus of this service is around the feature set and functionality
to address parents' needs," Wadsworth said. "It's not about delivering rich
media to a handset today."
The service will allow restrictions on phone numbers and let parents locate
their children with a global positioning system, Disney said in a statement.
Phones will be sold online and in US mall kiosks starting in June, and at
retail stores later in the year, Disney said. One phone will be offered from
Pantech Co for US$59.99 and another from LG Electronics Inc for US$109.99, each
when bought with a two-year service agreement.
Len Lauer, chief operating officer of Reston, Virginia-based Sprint Nextel,
said that the ESPN and Disney products are geared toward audiences with specific
demands. Lauer, speaking at the CTIA Wireless 2006 trade show in Las Vegas on
Tuesday, wouldn't discuss details of either service.
The service grew out of research that showed parents want to communicate with
their children at important times and know where they are, Wadsworth said.
"We did not hear, 'Gee, I want to get a phone for my kid so they can watch a
TV show on it,"' Wadsworth said.
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