The Walt Disney Company is capitalizing on its grip on the US family audience to sell a cellphone service to the nation's hotly contested 'tweens' market.
The Mouse House wireless offering, in partnership with telco Sprint Nextel, targets parents who want to control how their 10-15 year old children use their phones and to track their whereabouts.
The Disney Mobile service, unveiled at a trade show in Las Vegas and set to launch in June, will allow parents to map children through GPS technology via a phone or PC and to set times when the cellphone can be used, thereby controlling costs.
Disney Mobile is part of the entertainment empire's broader strategy to enter the cellphone industry as a mobile virtual-network operator - selling own-branded phone services via a third party network.
In February, Disney launched another service, Mobile ESPN, aimed at sports fans. Features include real-time scores, player statistics and video clips of games.
Data sourced from Wall Street Journal Online; additional content by WARC staff
