ORLANDO, Fla. – Sprint Nextel Corp. is keeping its hands firmly on the wheel this week in honor of National Distracted Driving Awareness Month, with the firm CEO Dan Hesse announcing to attendees of the CTIA 2011 show that his firm will be offering its driver safety product – Sprint Drive First – this year.
Hesse said the system would help drivers safely manage their mobile devices and focus on the road while behind the wheel.
“As a parent, I am proud that Sprint is offering distracted driving solutions like Sprint Drive First, which effectively helps wireless customers manage their usage, stay safe behind the wheel and focus their attention on driving,” Hesse said. “As mobile data usage continues to grow in popularity, Sprint wants to ensure its wireless consumers engage in safe behavior for themselves and others.”
Drive First will apparently be available in the third quarter of 2011 on Sprint’s Android phones and customers will have to pay a $2-per-month subscription charge (excluding surcharges and taxes) for each device using it.
The technology itself was created by Location Labs and is capable of locking the driver’s cell phone screen and redirecting calls to voice mail when driving is detected.
The system also blocks text-message alerts and auto-responds to messages by saying that the driver is currently unavailable.
In case one really needs to make a call, the system allows access to three key contacts and three mobile applications, such as GPS navigation.
Sprint hopes the application will give parents and bosses a way to monitor their teens’ or employees’ mobile driving behavior and subsequent safety.
