New Survey Finds 96% of Parents Have Had a Conversation with Their Kids About Phone Safety But That Doesn't Stop Them from Worrying and Monitoring

STARKVILLE, Miss., Aug. 22, 2018 /PRNewswire/ -- Ting, a top rated postpaid MVNO service and a division of Tucows Inc. (NASDAQ:TCX), today revealed the results of its Ting Digital Family Lifestyle Survey, giving insight into parents' thoughts, concerns, habits and rules around their kids' mobile phone use.

The survey covers topics that are important to those navigating parenting in the mobile digital age, including phone safety, content consumption on phones, rules around phone use, and the cost of keeping the family mobile. 1,565 parents with children under the age of 18 who have cell phones responded to the survey.

"The results of our first-ever Digital Family Lifestyle Survey are encouraging – they show that today's parents are engaged and committed to teaching their kids how to be better, smarter and safer mobile users," said Andrew Moore-Crispin, Director of Content, Ting. "As a parent, I understand the concerns and frustrations that so many of us have when our kids get that first mobile phone. At Ting, we're committed to helping parents make the best choices to quell their fears around safety, keep an eye on mobile use, and minimize the cost of having a mobile-enabled family."

Ting Digital Family Lifestyle Survey Key Takeaways

Parents are concerned about phone safety: Safety is top of mind for the majority of parents who give their kids phones.

• 76% of respondents got their kid a phone for use in case of emergencies. Though keeping kids safe was the #1 factor influencing purchase, parents are also aware that phones come with added safety risks that need to be addressed.
• While 96% of parents said they've had a conversation with their children about phone safety, parents are still concerned and don't appear to be leaving kids to their own devices.
• 78% of parents worry that their kids are giving away too much identifying information through apps and websites (i.e. geotagging their location or using their full name online).
• Most parents are being proactive about it: 73% said they monitor their kid's activity on their phone, with 52% of those parents reporting that they look at the content of their kid's text messages and 45% reporting that they use location tracking on their kid's phone.
• Despite safety concerns, 49% of parents agree that having a phone is net positive for their child.

How kids use their phones: Phones seem to be replacing other methods of content consumption for kids.

• 72% of parents report their kids would rather be on their phones than watch TV. In fact, according to parents, 27% of kids are primarily using the phones for watching and streaming video.
• Despite Facebook's recent announcement to proactively keep younger kids off its social platforms, parents say 23% of kids are primarily using their phones for social media.
• Still, the majority of kids (37%), according to parents, are primarily using their phones for communication, including FaceTime, texting and calling.
• When asked if they worried about their kid becoming addicted to technology, 81% of parents agreed or strongly agreed that this is a concern.

Rules around cell phones at home and school: Parents and school administrators are trying to find a balance between giving kids access to phones and setting parameters to keep devices from becoming a distraction.

• Phone usage seems to be a form of currency between parents and kids. 56% of parents say that they have used a kid's cell phone as incentive to reward good behavior, while 69% report that they've taken cell phones away as a consequence of bad behavior.
• While 52% of parents say that their child is allowed to use their phone any time of day, 79% of families have a strict "no phones at the dinner table" policy.
• The school rules are clear: The majority of parents said their kids are not allowed to use their phones during class time. 45% of parents said phones have to be kept in a locker or with a teacher during class, while 21% said that kids are not allowed to bring their phone to school at all.
• Parents are still finding ways to communicate: 32% of parents reported that they text with their children during the day.

Phones as an expense: Parents are trying their best to keep mobile expenses for their kids low. 

• Parents who said their kid's phone is on a family plan with a major mobile carrier paid an average of $42 per month for their kid's mobile use. Parents who said their kid's phone is connected to their pooled usage with Ting paid an average of $22 per month, nearly 50% less.
• Parents are handing over their old phones to kids rather than purchasing new ones for them: 61% of kids' first phones were hand-me-downs. Of the 39% of parents who did buy their kid's first phone brand new, 45% spent less than $100.

The Ting Digital Family Lifestyle Survey was conducted in July 2018. Recipients of the Ting newsletter were offered $5 in Ting service credit for their participation in the survey.
For more information about the survey, visit ting.com/blog/kids-and-cellphones.

About Ting
Ting (http://www.ting.com) offers mobile that makes sense. Ting has no contracts, no overage penalties and no hidden fees. Minutes, megabytes and messages are each billed separately and customers only pay for the usage levels they actually hit. Businesses and families can have unlimited devices on one account and share usage for even greater savings. Active devices on an account cost just $6 per month. Built on customer service, Ting offers a clear, usable website and smart, accessible people that are empowered to solve problems. Follow Ting on Facebook, Instagram and Twitter.

About Tucows
Tucows is a provider of network access, domain names and other Internet services. Ting (https://ting.com) delivers mobile phone service and fixed Internet access with outstanding customer support. OpenSRS (http://opensrs.com) and Enom (http://www.enom.com) manage a combined 29 million domain names and millions of value-added services through a global reseller network of over 40,000 web hosts and ISPs. Hover (http://hover.com) makes it easy for individuals and small businesses to manage their domain names and email addresses.

Contact:
Kristen Joerger, LKPR, Inc.
[email protected]
646-484-4577, 603-494-3295 (c)

SOURCE Ting