SMS forum updates

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VinLew

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#62365 4-Jun-2010 23:34

Would it be possible to get txt updates on subscribed forums, PMs etc? I wouldn't mind getting a news headline update every now and then =D. I suppose it would cost a bit, but it could be a good way to get people to participate in forums or the GZ community in general. Just an idea.

michaelmurfy

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#338423 5-Jun-2010 00:24

Could be possible, assuming the master freitasm wants to fork out and buy Cell Modules for his server (Which I don't think are cheap) and pay Vodafone for this service.

But in saying that, anything is possible.

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nate

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#338425 5-Jun-2010 00:51

michaelmurfy: Could be possible, assuming the master freitasm wants to fork out and buy Cell Modules for his server (Which I don't think are cheap) and pay Vodafone for this service.

freitasm already has a SMS gateway hooked up to Geekzone, so it wouldn't be too hard to implement.

freitasm

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#338444 5-Jun-2010 08:36

We don't need "Cell Modules" as we already have a SMS gateway in place (since about 2005 actually).

For a couple of years we had options to share content (news, reviews) via SMS and email. The number of SMS sent wasn't enough to justify it on those pages, and people receiving a SMS wouldn't type a long URL. Things change with more powerful smartphones though.

As for notifications in general, SMS cost money. Even using a third party gateway still costs about $0.10/ea to send those messages. Someone must pay. Seeing that some of our regular readers go to extreme measures to actually block ads on the site and deny us revenue, how do you see this feature being paid for?

I already thought of making it a prepay feature. Or a subscribers only feature. But people wouldn't pay to receive SMS, when they could compare to a $6/month deal for 1,000 messages from their operator (or whatever plan of the day is in).

If you have a suggestion, you are welcome to post here. The gateway is there, mostly idle.

Behodar

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#338507 5-Jun-2010 13:02

freitasm: people receiving a SMS wouldn't type a long URL. Things change with more powerful smartphones though.

The other issue, of course, is that once you have a smartphone you might as well just use email notifications. It's hard to see a "business case" for SMS updates, but I'm sure that some people will reply with ideas that surprise me :)

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#338517 5-Jun-2010 13:29

There was a suggestion to make it a Premium feature for subscribers - you get 20 free SMS notificatins when you subscribe (forum watch, topic watch, PMs) and then you can buy packs of those.

I personally don't think people would buy those. The way I see it people want these things for free, and yet they cost money to "produce".