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UK telephone booths could be saved by adoption schemeAugust 28

Thousands of red telephone booths could be "adopted" by local councils after BT reviewed its policy of removing them from the streets, reports The Telegraph.

"They will be able to keep the boxes to maintain the character of the area even if the telephone itself is removed.

BT is offering two schemes to the local authorities. One is the adopt-a-kiosk, where councils can pay £1 for the red boxes to be maintained, although they will no longer have phone equipment inside them.

Another is sponsor-a-kiosk, where the councils will be charged a fee of £500 annually towards the running and maintenance of the phone boxes. This applies to all phone boxes, not just the classic red design."

Daily Mail tries to lure users with free international textsAugust 28

Following the launch of their MailTXT texting service earlier this year, UK's Daily Mailhas now announced that new users will get 50 free international SMS messages to any phone when they sign up.

The intention of the scheme is to ‘build a more interactive relationship with its readers’, a press release said.

[via Journalism.co.uk]

Italians to get SMS guide to cheaper foodAugust 28

Italian consumers struggling to make ends meet will get help from their mobile phones next month when the government starts sending text messages to tell them where to buy cheap food.

"The Agriculture Ministry has joined forces with a number of Italian consumer groups to set up a free-of-charge SMS service to provide information about prices of 84 food products and nearby farmers markets.

With the new service, shoppers could send a text message with a single word, for example "bread", to a free number to get information about prices, the ministry said."

Vimpelcom reportedly to sell Apple iPhone in RussiaAugust 28

Vimpelcom Russia's second-largest mobile phone operator, said on Thursday it had signed a distribution deal with Apple Inc. to sell iPhone 3G in Russia.

This would leave China as the largest country still left negociating an iPhone distribution deal.

[via Reuters]

UNICEF Unveils "Bee" for emergency connectivityAugust 28

The first two prototypes of a system - called Bee - designed to provide connectivity in emergency situations has successfully tested by UNICEF that includes an FM radio station, WiFi and mobile messaging.

Developed internally by UNICEF Division of Communication and combining off the shelf products, it is being developed to augment relief work done in the first two weeks of an emergency when such technologies are often difficult or impossible to use.

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[via 160characters.org]