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Google homepage supports Burma fundraising efforts
Submitted by johnthompson on 7 May, 2008 - 12:26.
Google’s homepage is currently providing a link to make donations to either UNICEF or DirectRelief to help support their efforts in cyclone-hit Myanmar
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But you must use Google Checkout
It's a little churlish but to donate you need to do so via Google's Checkout online payments system, rather than the method of your choice. In addition, you have to give in US dollars - there is no localisation of currency. Which is odd, since the link appears on Google.co.uk as well as Google.com.
Google might argue that its use of Google Checkout enables it to offer to match donations up to $1 million which is fair enough. Nevertheless, Google won't do badly out of this offer: to donate via Google Checkout you need to register, so Google gains new customers, and reinforces its online payments system for existing customers.
But the two charities selected to benefit don't do as well as they could - there are no links to their websites on the Google donation page, and it doesn't look like donors get a chance to pass on their details to the two charities.
So, Google's matched giving and free advertising for the appeal are praiseworthy, and generating kudos for a corporate gift is no bad thing, but the walled-garden approach to giving doesn't sit well with my idea of charitable giving.