Launched earlier this year, Sprint’s Family Locator service is a way for families on the go to stay in constant touch. Mom, Dad or a trusted caregiver can locate loved ones without disturbing their activities, receive notification when a child enters or leaves a designated area, and quickly and easily send text messages to one or more family members.

The application uses GPS technology to determine the location of as many as four authorized mobile handsets, which it then displays on an interactive map. Sprint Family Locator also provides an interface for text-message communication and account management. These features are accessible from both a registered mobile handset and the secure Sprint Family Locator website.

Privacy safeguards, according to Sprint, include parent-child permission to track phones and text messages that are sent to the child's phone whenever the parent requests his or her location. Parents also can authorize others, such as a sitter, nanny or another relative to access a phone's location. Sprint Family Locator only can find phones that are in their coverage area and that are turned on. The Family Locator Service works on Sprint and Nextel models from Blackberry, Motorola, Palm, Samsung and Sanyo.

Walt Disney also has unveiled a mobile service designed for families that allows parents to monitor their children's locations and set limits on their children's cell phone use. At the core of Disney Mobile's family plans are its call control features that allow parents to use an online tool to designate when kids can use their cell phones, as well as who they can and cannot call. Even when phone use is restricted, kids can communicate with family members on the same Disney Mobile family plan as well as access "Always On" numbers and make emergency calls to 911.

A Family Locator feature allows parents to locate their kids' phones using Global Positioning System (GPS) technology. Parents can access the Family Locator feature from their phones or from www.disneymobile.com by entering a PIN which each parent personally selects. Once access is authorized, parents can locate their kid's phone by selecting "locate" through the feature. When the phone's location has been found, the location, a map of the location, and an indication of accuracy appear.

Pantech Wireless will provide the first handset on the Disney mobile service. The Pantech DM-P100 clamshell phone features a color display, external caller ID, a built-in camera with embedded flash, speakerphone features, text and picture messaging and voice activated dialing.