KPLU Local News
(2010-01-21)
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The earthquake in Haiti has put a spotlight on charitable donations sent from cell phones. The Red Cross, the Clinton Foundation and other non-profits have raised more than $30 million in the past week through text-messaging. Much of this is possible because of a tiny non-profit in Bellevue, called the Mobile Giving Foundation.
With just 5 regular employees--including CEO Jim Manis--Mobile Giving runs on a shoestring. Manis himself is an unpaid volunteer. "Even my kids lend a hand. My wife lends a hand," he says.
Manis and some colleagues came up with the idea for Mobile Giving after the Asian Tsunami of 2004. He was working in the wireless industry, and the hot new thing was making purchases, voting and entering sweepstakes using text messages.
"Some of us got together and said, 'How can we use this technology ... to enable a response to this horrible tragedy?'" says Manis.
They persuaded leading phone companies, such as Verizon, AT&T and T-Mobile, to allow donations via text message - with the money collected through your monthly bill. They helped raise $130,000 for tsunami victims.
There were some obstacles. For one, how to keep the charitable messages from getting taxed. And, the wireless companies had to surrender their typical fees. Manis says they take 50% of most purchases made via texting.
Fast-forward to 2007. After retiring from the company mQube, Manis helped launch the Mobile Giving Foundation. Today, they provide the infrastructure for 400 non-profits. They also make sure the charities are legitimate. The charities pay a fee and get a code-number and a keyword. If you text to that code, the cell phone company puts the $5 or $10 donation on your bill and sends the money to the foundation, which then forwards it to the specific charity.
Manis says this technology is all about immediacy. "If you see something you want to support, it becomes much easier for you to immediately respond," he says.
That's why text-donations have emerged as a fundraising force after emotional tragedies, such as the Haitian earthquake. The foundation covers its own costs through a combination of grants and the fees it charges. A similar foundation, called mGive, based in Colorado and Washington, D.C., was formerly affiliated with Mobile Giving.
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The Mobile Giving Foundation also has links to many charitable organizations.
The mGive Foundation, a division of Mobile Accord Inc., provides a similar service for the American Red Cross and 200 other non-profit organizations.
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