Controversy was provoked by the idea of the American Bartle Bogle Hegarty (BBH) advertising agency to employ homeless people as living carriers of the wi-fi signal. The aim of the charity project called Homeless Hotspots is to help homeless people by modernizing the traditional selling of newspapres on the streets. Instead of newspapers, 13 homeless people in Austin, Texas began to offer digital services on the street.
BBH equipped the homeless with 4G modems to sell internet connection for $ 2 for 15 minutes. Payments are made via Paypal and positions of the carriers can be monitored via Google Maps or on homelesshotspots.org.
BBH website experienced an attack of comments referring to this method of employing the homeless to be inappropriate and indecent. There were, however, also responses considering the idea to be inspiring and encouraging for positive interactions with the homeless community.
In reaction to the protests about abusing the homeless, the agency responded by explaining that the project means no enriching for BBH. It promotes either brand or product. Participants are guaranteed a minimum wage of $ 50 per 6 hours work a day. That is more than minimum hourly wage in Texas. Each participant will receive all the money he earns by selling the signal.
BBC website quoted one of the project participants, homeless Melvin of Ohio, who sees the project as a help to rise awareness about homelessness.
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