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Submitted by Mike Grenville on Thu, 18 Mar 2004 21:19 |
"Mobile operators must do more to put children first" said Childnet International’s Chief executive, Stephen Carrick-Davies. He urged mobile operators to consider the rights of children as they roll out their new 3G mobile phones with high speed unfiltered internet access.
Carrick-Davies made a plea that operators would not offer filtering or parental blocking tools as “paid for†add-on services and challenged operators not to exploit children and young people just because they represented a huge growth segment in the market for the latest integrated products.
He challenges the industry to learn from the experience and mistakes of the fixed Internet industry, as well as the very real need to showcase the positive, inspirational ways the mobile technology can be used to benefit young people. He also highlighted the need for effective 360 degree awareness and education for both parents/carers and young users so that they understand how to use these powerful new tools safely.
Learn From The Internet
“ I think the mobile industry is in danger of making the same mistakes as the Internet industry†explained Carrick-Davies. “Seven years ago many ISPs claimed to have no responsibility for the way young people used their tools and to be only the “highway†on which traffic moved. However, as the cases of children being hurt through inappropriate content and contact came to the media’s attention, the public began to see things very differently. With the threat of regulation, the Internet industry started to accept a “duty of care†and has now been working positively with organisations such as Childnet to produce high quality safety advice and services which help educate and give greater protection to children on line.â€
UK Operator Code
However, the one encouraging sign of proactive thinking was the Code of Practice recently drawn up and agreed on by the UK mobile operators which is designed in part to protect children from harmful content. In going through the points in this code, Carrick- Davies argued that this code be considered by companies in other regions as the issues facing children are not restricted to just the UK.
“The GSM Association has a key role in replicating this good practice in other regions,†said Carrick-Davies. “Children are early adopters and often are the drivers for new services such as multi-user games, text and MMS. However, the industry needs to treat them with respect and care and consider carefully the social implications this personal technology has on children and families before the mass marketing begins.
Act Now
Let’s not treat children as the ‘canaries in the coalmineâ€. He spoke of his recent trip to Japan where many children have been hurt through accessing dating sites from their latest Internet-enabled handsets without the knowledge of their parents and carers.
Tom Philips, the recently appointed Public Policy Director for the GSM Association said that “If we do not meet public expectations, it will damage us and there will be a danger of punitive regulatory intervention†said.
"I hope that the industry will respond positively and work constructively in partnership with us. concluded Carrick-Davies. “What is not up for sale is the way we care for and treat children’s rights and vulnerability in a fast changing environment. We don’t need to agree on everything to accept the essentialsâ€.
www.childnet-int.org
Childnet’s responses to the UK Mobile Operator’s code of practice (119KB) Chiildnet response
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