Donations To Haiti Via Text Message Surge Past $5 Million
As of the last update, the number stands at $5.2 million. Of that, more than half have apparently come from AT&T users ($2.63 million), the company told us today. If you’re still interested, simply text HAITI to the number 90999. A $10 charge will be attached to your next cellphone bill.
AT&T shared their data today after I reached out over some confusion about whether the company was actually profiting from this fundraiser. Yesterday, in a hurry to get the program going, the service was still charging users for sending this text messages, apparently. But when they realized that, they made them all free, and went back and retroactively removed any charges users may have gotten by texting for the cause. Nice move.
This texting drive, being run through mGive, a non-profit working with the Red Cross, is also leveraging Twitter and Facebook to help get the word out there. Donations are said to be coming in to the tune of $200,000 each hour, so they’re very likely coming close to $6 million raised at this point. Impressive stuff.