Now that’s a captive audience

According to South Africa’s Independent Online, some tow truck drivers have resorted to a sort of “>captive marketing” (my words) to potential towees. Reporter Natasha Joseph writes, “Some of Cape Town’s tow truck drivers are almost certainly using sophisticated ‘cellphone jammers’ to ensure that [traffic] accident victims cannot contact other tow truck drivers or even emergency services.” Joseph’s report, which follows detective work done by the Cape Town Amateur Radio Centre, includes confirmation of the practice from the national chair of the South African Towing and Recovery Association, who urged victims to report tow drivers engaging in the practice. There’s perhaps a simpler solution, though, as Joseph noted, in a recent Cape Town ARC newsletter: walk 30 yards away and try the signal again.