The wireless industry has an ethical decision to make. Should we market our products and services to kids?
The “tween” market generally is defined as children ages 11 to 14, and some recent wireless products and services target children as young as 6 years old.
All the players in the value chain must make the decision. Carriers offering family plans make it easy for parents to add a child for an extra $10 a month, especially by supplying kid-friendly phones. In addition, most carriers sell content aimed at children, such as mobile TV services featuring Nickelodeon programming.
Several device and toy makers already have made the decision it’s OK to market phones to kids. LG Electronics Co Ltd., Enfora, LeapFrog Enterprises Inc., Hasbro Inc., Firefly Mobile Inc. and Wherify Wireless Inc. are some of the companies that have announced gadgets aimed at children.
Content providers are in the running as well. Several companies are offering mobile TV channels filled with children’s content, not to mention the numerous games, ringtones and wallpaper based on children’s movies and TV shows.
And once kids have cell phones, should marketers use them as tools to reach kids about other products? AdAge.com, a Crain’s sister Web site to RCR Wireless News’ RCRNews.com, recently polled its audience-marketing and advertising executives-about whether it’s acceptable to use cell phones to market to kids. Two-thirds said cell-phone advertising to children is not acceptable as a marketing tool.
Children’s advocate and consumer groups are already striking back. Earlier this summer, one such group sent letters to Congress, urging legislators to look into marketing wireless phones to children. Another group has asked the FCC to protect children from porn on cell phones. Concerns range from phones being an easy mark for child predators to children’s health issues to lack of parental control over billing.
The U.S. wireless market becomes more saturated each day. Are children the only untapped segment left?
I think the vast proliferation of phones is a marketing tool in and of itself. My 4-year-old already has two toy cell phones-one that calls Buzz Lightyear and one that calls Home Depot about tools. He sees his parents talking on wireless phones every day and often says hi to grandma on one. Unfortunately, I’m sure he’ll be asking for a real wireless device soon enough-whether he sees a commercial for the new LeapFrog phone or not.
I think industry should take the highroad and back off marketing to children. What do you think? Log on to RCRNews.com and voice your opinion in this week’s poll.
