T-Mobile announced its new ‘Family Allowances’ service, to promote ‘responsible’ use of cell phones by children, or whoever’s phone you are paying for.
Available starting in August, the new service allows parents to easily control and how their family members use their T-Mobile phones and service. Using the online tool, parents can set and change limits for minutes, messages and downloads available for each phone on its family plan. Limits can be set up so that certain numbers can always be allowed, even if a phone has surpassed its allowance. Phones can also be limited to work only during certain times during the day.
Lisa Brown, director of marketing at T-Mobile USA, said in a statement:
“Parents across the country want their teens to have a mobile phone to stay in contact, but also want that phone to be used responsibly. With Family Allowances, parents get peace of mind knowing they can reach their sons and daughters, without having to worry about surprise bills. They can also reward their teens for responsible phone use by increasing their allowance.”
Family Allowances will be available for an introductory rate of $2 per month.
Check out the full press release after the jump.
Continuing its efforts to give families the freedom to stay connected on their terms, T-Mobile USA, Inc., announces the upcoming availability of Family AllowancesSM. This new feature, to be launched in August, allows parents to easily manage when and how their family members use their T-Mobile® phones and service.
With Family Allowances, parents can give their teens an upfront monthly wireless allowance that works on all the phones T-Mobile offers — virtually eliminating the worry of surprise overages. The feature lets parents set and change limits for minutes, messages and downloads (e.g., games, ring tones and wallpaper) using a simple online tool. Once the allowance is reached, the feature shuts off service for that specific element and parents receive a notification. Parents can stay in contact with their family members by setting up “Always AllowedSM” numbers that will continue to connect, even after allowances have been spent. Any unlimited calling features that are included in a family’s plan, such as myFaves® and T-Mobile-to-T-Mobile, can also still be used, which preserves the value of the calling plan. Additional controls are available so parents can choose to set allowances on unlimited calling features, if desired.
With Family Allowances, parents can choose to establish additional limits on the time of day a phone may be used, set allowances to zero to prohibit the use of minutes, messages or downloads (other than to “Always Allowed” numbers), and establish numbers that are blocked from calling or sending messages to any phone on their family plan.
“Parents across the country want their teens to have a mobile phone to stay in contact, but also want that phone to be used responsibly,” said Lisa Brown, director, marketing at T-Mobile USA. “With Family Allowances, parents get peace of mind knowing they can reach their sons and daughters, without having to worry about surprise bills. They can also reward their teens for responsible phone use by increasing their allowance.”
Family Allowances delivers significant benefits for all family members, with virtually no surprise bills, and the ability for parents to teach responsible phone use with a service that works with all the phones T-Mobile offers. In addition to Family Allowances, T-Mobile continues to offer Web Guard, a free-of-charge feature that restricts access to certain adult-themed (18 and over) Web sites. These services, combined with a range of flexible, affordable plans and compelling new devices, make T-Mobile a leader in understanding and delivering on the communication needs of families.
Pricing and Availability:
Family Allowances will be available in the coming weeks at select T-Mobile retail stores and online at www.t-mobile.com. For an introductory rate of $2 per month, parents can manage all lines within their T-Mobile family plan.