@mlnews said in Miscellaneous Tech News:
Actors Keanu Reeves and Jonathan Frakes are among the celebrities offering fans the opportunity to chat one-to-one via Zoom during lockdown.
Reeves is auctioning a 15-minute Zoom call for a children's cancer charity. The highest bid at time of writing is $9,800 (£7,800). Meanwhile, on the celebrity message platform Cameo, £166 will buy a 10-minute Zoom call with Star Trek actor Jonathan Frakes or skateboarder Tony Hawk. Cameo said there had been "a tonne of interest" in its Zoom service, Cameo Live, despite just 31 celebrities - only four of whom are women - signing up since launch, on Sunday. The start-up, which launched in 2017, also offers short recorded personal messages from a range of celebrities including reality TV personalities and sports stars, who charge various fees. "Cameo Live is very similar to a backstage pass at a concert or a meet-and-greet at an autographic signing," spokesman Brandon Kazimer told BBC News. "This is just the newest iteration of fan-talent access."
I could see businesses doing this as a morale boost, and I think it's awesome that these people are using comparatively little resources along with their celebrity in order to further good causes. I couldn't ever afford it unless we drop to a Zoom with Carrot Top where he's paying me.
