An electronic money transfer company is looking to become the Apple of the prison industrial complex, with the introduction of an MP3 player for inmates.
JPay, a private company that handles money transfers, electronic communications and video visitation for inmates, recently expanded its service to offer a tamper-proof MP3 player — called a JP3 player.
The prison does not pay for the service; rather, JPay installs kiosks in common areas of a prison, from which inmates can browse a library of more than 10 million songs. They can purchase a player for $40.
CALIFORNIA
The company has yet to offer its JP3 player to California prisoners, but it is not for lack of interest.
San Quentin inmate Boston Woodard said he thinks the California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation should allow the company inside its institutions.
“The player doesn’t have any means of accessing the internet, so I think the administration should consider them,” he said.
Woodard said he would not pay the price the company is asking — $1.99 per song — but he thinks there would be willing customers if downloads are affordable.
Another San Quentin prisoner, Sam Hearnes, believes the price is reasonable. “Considering the price per song recorded on CD is double that, I would definitely use the service,” he said.
TABLETS
JPay also has plans to offer a mini tablet — similar to a Kindle reader, but without wireless capabilities — in prisons by the end of the year.
“It’s got an e-mail application, music, e-books; it’s got anything you can imagine,” said Ryan Shapiro, founder and chief executive officer of JPay. “Think about education, think about games. It’s endless where we could go. We think it’s as big, if not bigger, than the moneytransfer business.”
Recently, a group of Bay Area residents contacted the San Quentin administration about the possibility of donating Kindles for prisoner education. The administration is considering the request.
