EMERYVILLE, Calif., March 8 /PRNewswire/ -- Industrious Kid, Inc., a unique new child-focused Internet company led by technology visionary and entrepreneur Jeanette Symons, today announced its official launch with an overview of the company's mission and the introduction of its executive team.

Industrious Kid's charter is to develop premium online products and destinations that are purpose-built for the rapidly growing population of children and tweens now accessing and using the Internet. The company's goal is to enable children to learn and grow as they use the Internet, while simultaneously ensuring a greater level of creativity, excitement and personal security for each child's online user experience. Industrious Kid's age-appropriate products, services and destinations strike a unique balance between the fun and stimulation that children desire and the safety and guidance that parents demand.

"Industrious Kid is filling a critical gap by providing children with a more satisfying Internet experience by developing products with far more intelligence and security features than currently exist in many of the products offered on the market today," said Lynn Beebe, school counselor in Scotts Valley Calif. "For example, there is a growing concern among parents and educators about the involvement of kids on MySpace.com and other social networking sites. These destinations expose children to either adult-oriented content or to people who do not have a child's best interests at heart. Industrious Kid is building a compelling alternative for a particularly underserved age group, and I am delighted to be collaborating with its founders."

The company is working closely with children, parents, educators and child advocates such as Beebe to better understand what all parties really want and need. The input they are providing is guiding the development of Industrious Kid's first product, scheduled for release in Q2 2006.

"We are looking to raise the bar with our Industrious Kid products, which are designed from the ground up with a child's security and overall user experience in mind," said Symons. "As an example, many of the so-called security features that the industry has released or announced thus far rely on voluntary behavior modification by kids. Instead of trying to resolve issues surrounding children and Internet usage this way, our approach is to develop better alternative destinations that provide not only a higher value user experience but also a greater level of parental insight and control. That way both children and parents' needs are met in a way that's realistic and results oriented.

Industrious Kid is the latest entrepreneurial initiative for Ms. Symons, the founder of both Ascend Communications and Zhone Technologies. After network technology innovator Ascend was sold to Lucent Technologies in 1999, Ms. Symons went on to found Zhone Technologies, a last-mile telecommunications solutions provider.

Joining Ms. Symons on Industrious Kid's executive team are technology veterans Lori Brown, who will serve as the company's Chief Operating Officer, and Tim Donovan, who will serve as the company's Vice President of Marketing. Ms. Brown was most recently Vice President of Engineering Operations at Zhone Technologies, and previously served as Vice President of the High Speed Routing Division of Ascend Communications. Mr. Donovan brings more than 19 years of consumer technology marketing and public relations experience to Industrious Kid, having held senior management positions with leading technology companies including Ascend Communications, Kineto Wireless, UTStarcom and Zhone.

About Industrious Kid, Inc.

Industrious Kid, Inc. is an innovative company dedicated to developing kid-friendly and parent-approved online products and destinations for kids and tweens, allowing them to gain positive experiences with the Internet in a safe environment. Industrious Kid is headquartered in Emeryville, Calif. For more information on the company, please visit http://www.industriouskid.com/.

CONTACT: Shannon Malliet of Industrious Kid, Inc., +1-510-984-1985, or
Shannon@industriouskid.com

Web site: http://www.industriouskid.com/