AT&T Suspends Smart Limits

AT&T says it is suspending its new program that let parents choose how and when their children can use their cell phones, citing a problem with the way it was working with 911 systems.

"Smart Limits For Wireless" was hailed as a new way for parents to control how their children use their cell phones, and it got a lot of attention when it was released three weeks ago.

The company says that problem was that while children could still dial approved numbers and 911 after their allowed minutes had been used, the 911 operators were sometimes blocked when trying to call back.

"We have no indications that this has ever happened, but we didn't want to take any chances," says AT&T spokesman, Mark Siegel.

"It looks like a software glitch, or anomaly of some sort. And we're trying to resolve that as quickly as we can."

Siegel says he has no indication that anyone actually experienced the problem.

AT&T will issue credits on the bills of those who signed up for the service, which cost $5 per month, per line.