Disney gives parents cellphone control
http://www.finanznachrichten.de/ext/goto.asp?id=6246241
S. Korean mobile phone makers to supply 'kid phones' to Disney Mobile
http://www.finanznachrichten.de/ext/goto.asp?id=6246211
Disney to launch wireless phone service targeted at families
http://www.finanznachrichten.de/nachrichten-2006-04/artikel-6245283.asp
Mobile Magic for Families: Walt Disney Company Unveils Breakthrough Wireless Service Specifically Designed for Families
http://www.finanznachrichten.de/nachrichten-2006-04/artikel-6245171.asp
Disney Focuses On Parental Control In New Disney Mobile
http://www.finanznachrichten.de/ext/goto.asp?id=6245123
Disney offers teen-tracker mobile
http://www.finanznachrichten.de/ext/goto.asp?id=6242983
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The phone that can show you where to find your children
Now the technology that helped track omagh bombers can help worried parents
By Linda McKee
06 April 2006
Mobile phone technology similar to that used to track the Omagh bombers could soon help Ulster parents to keep tabs on their kids.
An Irish security firm is offering a service that will allow parents to follow their children's movements through mobile phones.
Top Security, based in Dublin, is planning to launch the service early next month.
The company has already been surveying parents in the Republic to gauge how often they ring their children to check their whereabouts.
They said the service would offer parents "peace of mind in knowing where their children are without bothering them with telephone calls".
This latest service is a commercial alternative to phone surveillance which is often used by police to locate suspects in criminal cases. The phones are tracked by telecommunications base stations as soon as they are switched on.
A similar technique was used to convict Colm Murphy of plotting the Omagh bombing that took the lives of 29 people and two unborn children.
A mobile phone mast sited at Omagh College of Further Education picked up six calls to and from Murphy's mobile phone on the day of the blast.
The evidence helped to convict the 49-year-old, from Jordan's Corner, Ravensdale, Co Louth, but a retrial has since been ordered.
Parents who sign up to the new Toplocate system will be able to use a password to access a website. This will allow them to find their child's phone on a map, pinpointing it to within metres of the phone's location.
In order to use the Toplocate service, parents will have to inform their children that they are being monitored.
Children will also receive regular text messages from the company informing them that their phone is part of the location service for parents.
However, the child will not know when or how often their location is tracked on the internet.
Details of the exact service are as yet unclear, and the company has declined to offer extensive information until the official launch next month.
There are now more phones than people in Ireland, north and south, with several people owning multiple handsets. In the 12 to 18-year-old age group, over 90% own mobile phones.
© 2006 Independent News and Media (NI) a division of Independent News & media (UK) Ltd
http://www.belfasttelegraph.co.uk/news/story.jsp?story=685779
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As most children are not criminals, I wonder if it is against their Human Rights for them to carry mobile phones in order to be tracked. Also, regarding the tracking company - if their staff were not fully vetted for criminal records as are other people who work with children, it would seem a further risk to the children?
Best wishes
Jane
Below is a copy of a news item announcing the introduction of a Disney Mobile Phone network aimed at families in the UK.
Dennis Cannon
Disney to launch UK mobile phone service
LONDON (Reuters) - Walt Disney Co said on Thursday it plans to launch its own family-focused mobile phone service in Britain later this year, which will use capacity on O2's network.
The move follows the launch of similar services by Disney in the United States. An increasing number of companies, known as MVNOs, or mobile virtual network operators, are renting space on mobile phone networks.
Other MVNOs in Britain include retailer Tesco and Virgin Mobile.
Disney said the service will be targeted at families, with multiple handsets, entertainment content and parental controls.
"Increasing numbers of parents are choosing to buy mobile phones for their children as a way of keeping in touch and they are looking for a responsible service offering provided by a trusted brand," said Attila Gazdag, managing director of Disney's European Internet group.
O2 is owned by Spain's Telefonica.
From Mast Sanity/Mast Network
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From Chris Doyle: Disney launches phone package aimed at children despite radiation fears Source: Daily Mail Date: 28/04/2006 Sean Poulter in the Daily Mail reports that Disney is trying to encourage younger children to use mobile phones, ignoring fears about the potential health dangers. The company is introducing a family mobile phone package that gives up to three children in the household their own handsets. The Department of Health, concerned about the effects of radiation, has warned that children under 16 should only use mobiles when essential. It is believed that up to 30% of those aged between five and nine years of age already have their own phones, with the figure rising to 64% for those aged between ten and fifteen. Alistair Philips of the campaigning group Powerwatch said 'There is research from Sweden showing that if you use a mobile phone for ten years the risk of malignant brain tumours rises significantly'. Disney has said that parents believe the benefits of being able to reach a child at any time are more important than any possible health risks. [someone is begging to be sued here].
Informant: Iris Atzmon
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Children and mobile phones
http://omega.twoday.net/stories/1063256/
Long mobile phone use raises brain tumor risk
http://omega.twoday.net/search?q=brain+cancer+