Telia puts a halt on handsets

Nordic telecommunications company Telia has released a new campaign encouraging customers to disconnect from screens rather than promoting connectivity. 

Created by Try Olso through Pravda, Pause Box sees a family of four reluctantly hand over their phones to be placed in a special box made from recycled cardboard and designed to hold up to 12 mobile phones. Once freed from their devices, the family reconnect in a weird but wonderful way.

A series of shorter spots [below] expands on this scenario, with the family unaware of fairly seismic changes because they've had their eyes glued to their phones. 

The campaign was launched in Norway after research revealed 75% of parents with children under 16 say that their children spend too much time on screens, with four out of ten finding it difficult to balance children's screen use with other activities, and almost half saying they themselves spend too much time on their mobile phones. 

The box has been available for free in Telia stores across Norway, with many locations reporting they've run out of stock.