Wikipedia founder Jimmy Wales has an ambitious new project on the roll, launching a new phone service and social network in the U.S.
The socially involved and charitable phone service known as "The People's Operator" has been running in the UK and has attracted more than 30,000 customers as of May.
Jimmy Wales is now bringing the venture to the U.S. as well, complete with a social network called "TPO" that aims to make it easier for regular individuals to support their preferred cause. More specifically, TPO allows people to automatically donate 10 percent of their monthly phone bill to whichever cause or charity they want.
"We offer a good value in the marketplace, so we don't cost any extra," Wales explained, as cited in Business Insider.
Wales further notes that people have a choice to either remain with their current provider, which may spend more than 10 percent of their money on billboards, TV commercials, magazine ads and such, or switch to The People's Operator and make a difference, as it will spend that money on your chosen charity.
The mobile phone service, The People's Operator, is set to launch on Tuesday, July 21, in the U.S., hopping on Sprint's network. The service will offer a number of options off-contract, including an "Unlimited Goodness" plan that costs $32 per month and comes with unlimited talk, text and 2GB of data.
The People's Operator will not only allow people to donate that 10 percent to the charity they want, but it will also donate 25 percent of its own total profits to various charities such as the NSPCC and Childline.
The TPO social network, meanwhile, builds on the idea that people have the power to raise billions together and spend it at a good cause. TPO aims to serve as a community of people willing to raise money for causes while they benefit from the regular social networking options such as connecting with others. A one-of-a-kind mobile network supports this ad-free social space with charity in mind.
TPO users will be able to update their status, post photos, join groups, while also raising money for the causes they believe in and want to support. The social aspect is not mandatory, however, people can use it simply as a donation platform to raise money directly without worrying about their social activity on the network.
Getting people to switch to The People's Operator, meanwhile, may prove to be a challenge in today's competitive market, but the venture sounds quite promising nonetheless. UK consumers had a positive reaction to the concept and it will be interesting to see how Americans will react.
