Do you think the Yellow Pages should be opt-in only?
Do you think the delivery of the Yellow Pages in Australia should be changed to an opt-in system?
While you can choose to opt-out from receiving the Yellow Pages, you have to jump through a few hoops to get there and then have to renew your 'opt-out' decision again every three years.
An opt-in system would mean that you only receive the directory if you specifically request it. Last financial year Sensis printed around 20 million phone books - that's almost one for every person in the country.
Let us know your opinion in the poll below and in the comments. Add your voice to the debate.
Read the original article that sparked this massive discussion:
Yellow Pages Distribution Banned in the USA
Since posting an article about the Yellow Pages distribution being banned in the USA, we have seen a huge reaction in the comments. From agreeing and disagreeing to an official response from Sensis!
Adam makes the point that "It is the blanket distribution method" which is being attacked - not the Yellow Pages - and asks with Shane: "what about all other types of printed advertising?"
Should all printed advertising that we receive 'en masse' in our letter boxes be banned (or at least restricted to opt-in only)?
Glenn wonders whether if we had to pay to receive the Yellow Pages "they would have died out years ago" and suggests the problem lies in the fact that we receive them for free.
Then we actually received an official response from Sensis! (How nice of them to visit!) Damian was nice enough to point out that Service Central mentioned at the end of the article that you can use us as a replacement to the Yellow Pages, stating that this 'smacks of stunt'. We'll let you decide for yourselves.
Damian then went on to write his own article in the comments area stating that an opt-in system would be "an attack on both freedom of choice and welfare" - considering an opt-out system is already in place, I'm not sure how a properly managed opt-in would be any different. However each to their own.
Read Damian's full post in the comments below the article.
However there is some light at the end of the tunnel, a few of our commenters were nice enough to point out some 'alternative' uses for the yellow pages. Martin suggests using it as a firestarter for the BBQ: "You will light up a beautiful fire after you have burned a Yellow Page" while Bobby plaintively wonders: "What am I going to build forts out of now?"
So on to the big questions - Has print media had its day? Should everything be opt-in only with online alternatives? Or is this a restriction of our right to 'choose'? What do you think? Let us know in the comments.
