Orange and T-Mobile alone in top slicing charitable text donations

Social Justice

Orange and T-Mobile are continuing to cream off charitable donations made by text message. A campaign is now underway to get Minister for Civil Society, Nick Hurd MP, to take action.

Update 1530hrs 15/04/11

Everything Everywhere have announced that they’re suspending the top slicing of charitable text donations.

The Times today highlights (£) the outrageous actions of Orange and T-Mobile which continue to cream off charitable donations made by text message, as highlighted by Left Foot Forward last month. A campaign is now underway to get Minister for Civil Society Nick Hurd MP to take action.

Orange and T-Mobile are now alone among mobile operators in charging charities for text donations. Since this blog last covered the story, Virgin and Three have both changed their practice to pass on 100% of text donations to charities.


The recently merged mobile giant, renamed ‘Everything Everywhere’, is expected to have a 37 per cent market share. Given that text donations are expected to be worth £96m per year by 2014, it means that Orange and T-Mobile will make annual profits of £3.5m by top slicing 10% of donations.

A letter to Nick Hurd MP, seen by Left Foot Forward, from leading charity CEOs including Bruce Leeke, Acting CEO of Institute of Fundraising, and Thomas Hughes-Hallett, Chief Executive of Marie Curie Cancer Care and Chair of the Philanthropy Review, says:

“While O2, Vodafone, 3 and now Virgin are committed to passing on 100% of text donations to charities. Orange and T-Mobile (Everything Everywhere) are the only remaining mobile operator not to do this.

“We consider this to be an impediment to effective fundraising via mobile text giving and I am now writing to ask whether you could please raise this with Everything Everywhere and urge them to join the other mobile operators in offering 100% of text donations direct to charities.”

According to The Times (£):

[Nick Hurd] emphasised that both Orange and T-Mobile were doing positive work in other areas, including their “Apps for Good”. He added: “I urge them to take this opportunity to show their commitment in this way as well.”

The Institute of Fundraising are urging people to email Steven Day, vice president of brand and communications at Everything Everywhere.

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22 Responses to “Orange and T-Mobile alone in top slicing charitable text donations”

  1. Will Straw

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  2. iPayStation

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  3. Chris Goulden

    RT @wdjstraw When will Orange & T-Mobile stop top slicing charitable text donations? http://bit.ly/gOhp4M

  4. David Hodges

    RT @wdjstraw: When will Orange & T-Mobile stop top slicing charitable text donations? http://bit.ly/gOhp4M

  5. notlob

    RT @wdjstraw: When will Orange & T-Mobile stop top slicing charitable text donations? http://bit.ly/gOhp4M

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