Calling all innovative charities - telcos seek expressions of interest for charities to participate in SMS donation pilot program
Donating to charity is set to become even easier with telcos seeking 15 charities to participate in a 12 month pilot of a program enabling mobile users to make donations via SMS. Set to commence in July this year, the program is being coordinated by the Telco Together Foundation, an organisation which includes representatives from Telstra, Optus and Vodafone.
Under the program, mobile users will be able to make an SMS donation to charity with the charge appearing on their mobile bill and the funds being passed on to charities by the phone provider. Pre-paid phone plan customers will also be able to donate.
This trial is long overdue in Australia, with successful programs already underway in the UK and the US like ‘JustTextGiving’ by Vodafone and the Mobile Giving Foundation.
To be eligible to participate in the program charities must:
- Hold and maintain Deductible Gift Recipient (DGR) status for the duration of the pilot
- Hold and maintain relevant state-based Fundraising Licences
- Be able to provide a customer helpline from 9am-5pm Monday-Friday throughout the campaign period (regulatory requirement for PSMS content providers)
Registered charities wishing to participate in the program should send their expressions of interest to smsdonations@telcotogether.org.au by Wednesday 8th April 2015. More information about eligibility criteria and what to include in an expression of interest can be found by clicking here
For more information please contact:
Melanie Twomey
Senior Associate
Harwood Andrews
T: 03 5225 5238
E: mtwomey@harwoodandrews.com.au
Ashleigh Wall
Senior Associate
Harwood Andrews
T: 03 5226 8559
E: awall@harwoodandrews.com.au