ProQuent ACCESS Mobile enables network operators to filter out and control access to inappropriate, indecent and offensive content
ProQuent Systems, provider of intelligent mobile data infrastructure, today announced the launch of ProQuent ACCESS (Authorized Content Control & Electronic Subject Screening) Mobile.
The solution will enable mobile operators, for the first time, to manage and monitor content sent or accessed over their network without any degradation in network performance.
In January 2004, UK mobile network operators Vodafone, Orange, T-Mobile, Virgin Mobile, O2 and 3 signed up to a Code of Practice that governs the way content is classified and made available to customers.
The Code, endorsed by UK Communications Minister Stephen Timms, will come into
force by the end of 2004.
ProQuent ACCESS Mobile is the only commercially available solution which enables mobile operators to actively enforce content and access control policies in real-time.
ProQuent ACCESS Mobile can:
* Avert access to inappropriate mobile Internet sites and content
(including video streams);
* Filter mobile messages containing inappropriate or offensive material from unapproved sites;
* Allow operators to manage services based on content
classifications.
It will allow mobile network operators to create tailored service
packages for subscriber groups such as young children or teenagers. Operators will also be able to provide authorized-only access to adult content, chat rooms or gambling sites, for example.
The ProQuent ACCESS Mobile solution is designed to be easily integrated with a mobile network operator’s existing service delivery platform. As content filtering and access control is managed at the network level, mobile phone users do not have to upgrade their handsets or download any software.
In a statement about the launch of the mobile industry Code of Practice, Stephen Timms, Communications Minister, said “This Code is an excellent example of the responsible self-regulation we are keen to encourage among the mobile operators to address issues relating to new types of content now available on mobile handsets. New technology introduces significant benefits and opportunities, but it can also bring new
concerns and we must ensure that safeguards are in place to protect those who are vulnerable, such as children.”
“How to prevent inappropriate and unsuitable content reaching handsets and polluting the mobile Internet is a burning issue for every network operator,” said Tom Hamilton, founder and CTO at ProQuent Systems.
“Operators realize they have a duty of care to provide a safe and controlled mobile environment, but have so far been unable to deliver against this in practice. ProQuent ACCESS Mobile is the first solution to be designed specifically to address this issue and will enable operators to give parents complete peace-of-mind over their children’s use of mobile services.”
The solution is based on the ProQuent MSSP (Mobile Services Switching Point), which provides a flexible platform for operators to manage data applications running on their networks. The ProQuent MSSP scans and filters data traffic and checks Internet access requests against the world’s largest categorized database of inappropriate Web content, created and updated by SurfControl. The SurfControl Content Database includes more than six million URLs and one billion Web pages.
SurfControl reviews and categorizes Web sites in more than 65 languages and 200 countries, and over 35,000 new URLs are added every week. The SurfControl Content Database is kept current with a combination of expert human review, state-of-the-art automated tools and customer submissions.
ProQuent ACCESS Mobile includes three pre-configured service packages:
* ACCESS Mobile PC for Parental Control
* ACCESS Mobile EC for Enterprise Control
* ACCESS Mobile GM for Online Gaming
ProQuent ACCESS Mobile also provides the tools and infrastructure needed for operators to create custom services packages or to integrate control services into pre-existing packages.