Innovation from the humble public phone box

In conversation with Hugo Feiler, co founder and CEO https://minima.global/

Do you remember the public phone box? Beloved of Dr Who and his Tardis, the humble phone box is fast disappearing from our topography as mobile devices remove the need for public phones. In some places, local communities have converted these iconic pillar boxes into unusual new uses such as public libraries and book sharing hubs or even temporary housing for the homeless. But sometimes we can learn from the past as well as the future. Consider the original function of a phone box. The telephone user would insert a coin required to make a call. The phone box would mechanically confirm that the coin presented was legal tender and the required size and shape. Once checked the user then dialled the number and was connected. The call would run for the required time and then more coins were requested or the call disconnected.

What is interesting to this article is that telephone box did not need to know who the user was. It did not need to know who they were. It did not need the address, bank account or credit history. It just needed to authenticate the coin.

Enter the digital world and things got a whole lot more complicated. In order to set up a backend billing functionality, using legacy banking system, the telephone provider needs to do a background check on the new user just so they can be sure the bills will be paid. The shift of authentication moves from the payment to the person.