ichaper, The Mobile Chaperone, Launches Internationally On November 19

- Android App Designed to Foster Dialogue Between Parents and Children on Responsible Smartphone Use

- 6 Month Free Trial Subscription for Those Who Sign Up Before 12/31/13

PARIS, Nov. 19, 2013 /PRNewswire/ -- Mobile product developer Innovation 31 announced today the launch of ichaper, The Mobile Chaperone, a comprehensive smartphone monitoring application designed to encourage family dialogue around responsible mobile device use. The ichaper service will be available for Android devices throughout the United States, Canada, Central America, Europe, North Africa, Australia, and South Korea as of November 19, 2013.

With 51% of children ages 2-14 using smart devices (according to NPD Group's June 2013 Kids and Apps: A New Era of Play), ichaper was developed as a tool for parents to help chaperone and educate their children as they assimilate into the world of smartphones, the internet, social networks, and gaming. The one-stop, full-control app is designed to evolve as the child matures.

The ichaper app offers:

• Education - parental control options including call and text allowance*, usage scheduling, internet and application control
• Privacy - Enables parents to monitor activity and set limits on a child's mobile phone use without eavesdropping on private conversations or combing through text messages.  The child using the phone can review the parameters of use set by his or her parents.*
• Security – ICE information*, location based services, quick emergency calls, and parental alerts
• Peace of mind – GPS data including geofencing, geotracking and tracking on demand
• User-friendly interface – Parental Web-App for easy on-demand phone management

*Denotes features unique to ichaper

ichaper offers all of its basic security features including geolocation free of charge. Subscriptions enabling access to premium parental control features are available for $19.90 /year. To celebrate the global launch of the app, ichaper is offering a six month free trial of ichaper's full menu of services for every account connected to a phone before December 31, 2013.

"As the digital childhood becomes a global reality, parents – and their children – want support in navigating the multiple issues this new frontier brings into our lives," said Germain Brion, CEO of Innovation 31. "ichaper helps parents chaperone and educate their children as they engage with their mobile, all the while respecting the child's privacy."

A University of Washington study (Journal of Adolescence, v35 n6 p1527-1536 Dec 2012) found that teens generally considered their rather high level of connectivity necessary for effective cultural development and to prevent social isolation. For parents, on the other hand, who may wish to restrict access to their children's exposure to certain kinds of content online, mobile devices can make it more difficult to use the passive monitoring strategies that many parents say they prefer. Hence, there is demand for more innovative solutions that both support parental oversight and foster children's natural development.

The ichaper app was developed by Innovation 31, a Paris-based mobile developer led by French-American entrepreneur Germain Brion. The beta version launched under the name e-zyou in France in January 2013 to much critical acclaim. The application quickly became synonymous with mobile education when it partnered with the leading children's television channel, Gulli (part of the Lagardere Group) for a national promotion beginning in Q4 2013.

For more information or to download the ichaper app, please visit www.ichaper.com

About ichaper
ichaper, The Mobile Chaperone, was developed by Innovation 31, a Paris-based mobile developer led by French-American entrepreneur Germain Brion. The beta version of the application launched under the name e-zyou in France in January 2013 to much critical acclaim. The application became synonymous with mobile education when it partnered with the leading children's television channel, Gulli (part of the Lagardere Group) for a national promotion beginning in Q4 2013. The beta version was featured in various articles and television reports in France including Agence France Presse, Elle, Envoye Special, M6, and Telematin. Convinced that parental control on smartphones is a global concern, the company recently closed an initial round of fundraising to allow it to expand internationally. For more information on ichaper, visit www.ichaper.com.

SOURCE Innovation 31