We're all familiar with branded credit cards. But how about a branded mobile phone? That's what Disney Mobile offers, with services customized for its specific niche market: families with children.

There are many MVNOs operating today. Some target consumers and others target business. Virgin Mobile, which was the first to market in 1999 (and still the best known), targets young consumers. Another prominent MVNO, Working Assets Mobile, promotes social responsibility and political action. Last year, the Yankee Group projected that the MVNO market will reach $10.7B by 2010¹.

Disney Mobile is a good example of a "lifestyle" MVNO, and an interesting case study specifically because it provides highly customized services for its target audience. In addition to branded handsets and a custom Disney interface, Disney provides family-oriented features that include (in addition to typical voice services):

• Family Monitor, to help parents control the family's wireless spending.
• Family Alert, for sending priority messages to the entire family at the same time.
• Call Control, to enable parents to control the days and times that children's phones can be used.
• Disney Zone, which offers Disney games and content.
• Family Locator, a location-based service (LBS) that uses GPS to enable a parent to pinpoint on a map the location of a child's phone.