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Angry Birds launches new fundraising game with BirdLife International 1

Fundraising | Vibeka Mair | 2 Dec 2011

Angry Birds, the world’s most popular game for touchscreen smartphones, has this week launched a new fundraising game online, in support of BirdLife International’s Preventing Extinctions Programme.

The game, which is on a new website created by Angry Bird’s publishers Rovio Entertainment, encourages fans to get ‘angry’ about bird extinctions and make a donation to provide vital help for ‘the world’s 189 angriest birds’ – those which BirdLife International classifies as critically endangered.

In addition to requesting donations, the website and game raises provides details on BirdLife International’s initiatives and encourages players to connect with the charity on social networks.

It’s the second time this year that Rovio Entertainment and BirdLife International have partnered.

Rovio first supported BirdLife International in April 2011 when it invited BirdLife to join its Angry Birds Seasons Golden Egg Hunt. Angry Birds launched the Easter version of the Angry Birds Seasons game by sending fans to look for a hidden Golden Easter Egg clue on BirdLife’s website. In the first hour more than 50,000 Angry Birds fans visited BirdLife’s web pages and over the following weekend BirdLife trebled its Facebook followers.

Apple preventing app donations

A BirdLife spokesman says Rovio has a massive outreach and the tie-in is really “neat”, but he did say it was still an issue that charities cannot fundraise through Apple applications (apps) – where the game Angry Birds is consistently in the top five list for most downloaded apps.

Angry Birds became a global gaming phenomenon soon after its launch in 2009 and rapidly became the world’s most popular application of any kind for touchscreen smartphones. It has now been downloaded more than 500 million times.

Apple has a restriction on apps containing charity donation functionality. The reasons for the restriction are unclear, though commentators have suggested that Apple does not wish to open the door to software developers receiving payments directly. At present they have to go through the AppStore, which ensures that Apple can take a cut of the proceeds.

Apple’s closest rival for apps, Android, does let charities fundraise through its platform.

“It’s a big issue for charities,” said the BirdLife spokesman. “Apple aren’t budging. An Angry Birds app with BirdLife did come up in discussions. But it’s just not possible.

“Ideally people should be able to donate while playing on their iPhone or Android – but it’s commercial rather than technical barriers preventing this”.

Earlier this year, Nick Hurd wrote to Apple to urge the software giant to lift its restrictions on apps containing charity donation functionality.

 A Cabinet Office spokesman said:

“Cabinet Office Minister for Civil Society, Nick Hurd, met with Apple representatives to urge them to consider allowing charitable giving Apps on their mobile devices including the iPhone. Apple have since decided not to lift these restrictions.

“The government fully supports the development of new technologies that encourage giving and our White Paper on giving is committed to nurturing this quickly evolving environment. Companies such as Orange and Vodafone have recently demonstrated the positive benefits this technology can have for charities by launching their own apps. In addition we know that the Android platform is supportive of in-apps for charitable donation.”

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