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It’s been a couple of years since we featured RideCharge’s mobile-enabled taxi booking service. Now, aiming to offer even more integration with mobile technology, Vodafone UK is sponsoring a fleet of branded cabs in London, enabling passengers to pay by text message and charge their devices on the move. Mobile provider Vodafone’s fleet of branded taxis took to the streets earlier this month, offering London consumers a way to charge their phones on the go and then pay by SMS when they arrive at their destination. Wrapped in a bold and colorful Union Jack design created from more than 2,000 London street names, the cabs are equipped with dedicated phone chargers supporting all makes of mobile phone. To pay for their rides by SMS, Vodafone customers must first register with the company; once that’s done, all they need do is text the word “Taxi”’ followed by their taxi’s number and the amount they want to pay to 31255; there’s no service charge, and both the calls and texts are free. Also part of Vodafone’s promotion is a similar initiative on Heathrow Express trains. Free phone charging is a classic brand butler service that has appeared on our virtual pages on numerous occasions — Orange’s efforts at the UK’s Glastonbury Festival each year are a perfect example — but the addition of mobile payments makes Vodafone’s campaign particularly compelling as it offers a taste of what will surely be forthcoming services from the telecoms giant. One for inspiration! Spotted by: Parul Rohatgi