WestVirginiaRebel Posted March 13, 2012 Share Posted March 13, 2012 NY Times: AUSTIN, Tex. — Which product at this year’s South by Southwest technology conference received more attention than perhaps any other? Homeless people as wireless transmitters. A marketing agency touched off a wave of criticism and debate when it hired members of the local homeless population to walk around carrying mobile Wi-Fi devices, offering conferencegoers Internet access in exchange for donations. BBH Labs, the innovation unit of the international marketing agency BBH, outfitted 13 volunteers from a homeless shelter with the devices, business cards and T-shirts bearing their names: “I’m Clarence, a 4G Hotspot.” They were told to go to the most densely packed areas of the conference, which has become a magnet for those who want to chase the latest in technology trends. The smartphone-toting, social-networking crowds often overwhelm cellular networks in the area, creating a market that BBH Labs hoped to serve with the “Homeless Hotspots” project, which it called a “charitable experiment.” It paid each participant $20 a day, and they were also able to keep whatever customers donated in exchange for the wireless service. But as word of the project spread on the ground and online, it hit a nerve among many who said that turning down-and-out people into wireless towers was exploitative and discomfiting. Tim Carmody, a blogger at Wired, described the project as “completely problematic” and sounding like “something out of a darkly satirical science-fiction dystopia.” A commenter on the BBH Labs blog offered mock praise for the project, then complained that “my homeless hotspot keeps wandering out of range, and it’s ruining all my day trades!” On Monday, the project’s scheduled last day, BBH Labs was scrambling to explain itself. ________ Exploitation? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Pepper Posted March 13, 2012 Share Posted March 13, 2012 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Pepper Posted March 13, 2012 Share Posted March 13, 2012 This has never been done before, the horror of people using people to advertise services.... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RandyM Posted March 13, 2012 Share Posted March 13, 2012 This has never been done before, the horror of people using people to advertise services.... @Pepper! How familiar are you with these services?? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SrWoodchuck Posted March 13, 2012 Share Posted March 13, 2012 I can see T-shirt sales from this venture: "Hit up @ MD2020!" 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
NCTexan Posted March 14, 2012 Share Posted March 14, 2012 Your homeless wireless service "stinks"... When are you going to "clean up" your offering? The rejoinders to this program are countless. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
WestVirginiaRebel Posted March 14, 2012 Author Share Posted March 14, 2012 Your homeless wireless service "stinks"... When are you going to "clean up" your offering? The rejoinders to this program are countless. "Warning: This service may expose you to viruses..." Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
pollyannaish Posted March 14, 2012 Share Posted March 14, 2012 This was really badly handled. They should have just simply hired these people to provide wireless services. Marketing still matters--but you have to PAY for it. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Pepper Posted March 15, 2012 Share Posted March 15, 2012 @Pepper! How familiar are you with these services?? I might have used one or two. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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