Verizon Blocked BrightKite/Loopt Until they Offer Parental Controls

I didn’t realize this until I read an article in the Hamilton Spectator by David Riordon.

Ultimately Verizon made the right buisiness decision to block BrightKite (and ultimately Loopt) until these services deployed parental safeguards.  The number of web-hipsters who won’t choose Verizon as their wireless provider is far fewer than the number of parents who will choose Verizon for themselves and their children because they can block or constrain the use of these social networks.  Furthermore, while there’s no public research on the subject, I’m fairly certain that wireless providers are going to be like political parties, children will tend to stick with the carrier their household used.  So all those kids whose parents chose Verizon because it blocked social networks will stay on, even when they move off the family’s bill.