Community text back service a failure?
Back in the summer, at the Council's "Great Get Togethers", the Council introduced a "Community Text Back Service". The service enables Greenwich residents to get text messages to their mobile phone about events and Council news. It is by no means a free service though, and registration will mean you are charged for every text you receive.
Sadly, the Council has not provided details of what percentage cut they may or may not take from these delivered messages, but presumably if lots of people register it could be a money spinner. However, since it was launched, and in response to a question by Cllr Wilson, the Council has said that a grand total of 20 people have signed up for the service.
We also notice from the question documents that Cllr Wilson asked how much the service had cost to set up. This question went unanswered, actually, it was ignored. Could it be that it was ignored because the set-up cost when compared with the 20 users would be politically inconvenient? Does this also explain why the Council has all of sudden started promoting the service on the front page of the website?
Sadly, the Council has not provided details of what percentage cut they may or may not take from these delivered messages, but presumably if lots of people register it could be a money spinner. However, since it was launched, and in response to a question by Cllr Wilson, the Council has said that a grand total of 20 people have signed up for the service.
We also notice from the question documents that Cllr Wilson asked how much the service had cost to set up. This question went unanswered, actually, it was ignored. Could it be that it was ignored because the set-up cost when compared with the 20 users would be politically inconvenient? Does this also explain why the Council has all of sudden started promoting the service on the front page of the website?
posted by greenwich.watch at 10:45 am
4 Comments:
I asked the question after seeing the textback service advertised at the Great Get Together’s earlier this year. I would have asked it sooner, but as your readers are aware the Labour administration kept cancelling council meetings, so I had a large backlog by the time the November meeting came around.
I was going to ask a verbal supplementary about the cost, as they have sort of ignored that part of my question, but then the meeting was called to close quite abruptly, so now I’m going look further into the issue and I’ll probably ask a further written question on it at the December meeting.
Can I ask if any of your readers have used the service? Any views or reviews?
Not bloody likely! Don't you think we give more than enough of our money to the Council already?
Ahahahahaha, whirr, clunk - the Council seems to be the sort of customer that Del Boy dreams of. How "right-on" that must have sounded: everyone has mobile phones, we have the cool technology to text about the Council news and events, ergo people will not only sign up in droves to receive these messages they will be delighted to PAY MONEY to receive the texts, and we will be raking in squillions in commission. Oh, yes: "dstbn dy sat b4 bnk hol Mon", "U o us £4.5m Cncl Tx". This time next year, Rodney, we'll be millionnaires.
Indigo (Google won't let me log in at the moment)
Hmm. Looks like it is actually free - you pay your normal network rate to send the registration text, then there's no further cost.
God knows what useful information I've just signed up to get though.
John
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