Modernizing Local Government without Leaving Residents Behind
As municipalities transition from traditional local cable TV to modern streaming, a significant connectivity gap emerges. Residents who previously relied on their televisions to stay informed may find themselves excluded by the complexities of digital streaming.
PhoneLive.io solves this problem by turning any telephone into a front-row seat for civic engagement, while simultaneously providing the automation tools Clerks need to manage meetings efficiently.
Bridging the Post-Cable Gap
The move to streaming is inevitable, but it shouldn't be exclusive. PhoneLive.io ensures your transition is seamless for all constituents:
- Replacing the "TV Experience":
- For residents who aren't tech-savvy or lack high-speed internet, our platform restores the ease of "tuning in" via a simple phone call.
- Universal Reach:
- We ensure that moving to the cloud doesn't mean moving away from your seniors, rural residents, or low-income households.
- Restoring Public Trust:
- By maintaining a low-barrier access point, you demonstrate a commitment to transparency that goes beyond a web link.
- Streamlined Archiving:
- Save hours of manual labor. Our system helps archive the audio recording of meetings by both the phone and website, ensuring a centralized, permanent audio record of every public session.
- Detailed Records & Automated Reporting:
- Simplify record keeping. We provide detailed reports on usage and attendance.
Frequently Asked Questions
- How do residents access public meetings by phone?
- PhoneLive streams the live audio of your public meetings to a regular phone number. Residents simply dial in from any telephone to listen to the meeting in real time — no internet connection, app, or account required.
- Does this help us meet accessibility and ADA obligations?
- Yes. Telephone access provides a low-barrier way for seniors, rural residents, and low-income households without reliable internet to participate in public meetings, supporting your accessibility commitments alongside your web stream.
- Do residents need internet or a smartphone to listen?
- No. Any landline, flip phone, or smartphone works. Residents just dial the number and listen — there is nothing to install and no digital literacy required, which restores the ease of the old "tune-in" cable experience.
- Is there a free trial, and what does it cost?
- Yes. You can start with a free 30-day sandbox — no credit card required — to evaluate PhoneLive for your council or board. After that it runs on a simple monthly plan; see the pricing page for current plans.
- How long does it take to set up?
- About 15 minutes. Getting started only requires a cell number, and if you already stream meetings you paste your existing RTMP stream key once. The system then runs in the cloud with no new hardware to install or maintain.
- Does PhoneLive work with our meeting streaming setup?
- Yes. PhoneLive integrates with the tools municipalities already use, including Resi, Boxcast, OBS, Zoom, StreamYard, and vMix, and can automatically archive the audio of each public session for your records.
Don't Let Modernization Create Exclusion
Discover the simple way to provide front-row civic access to seniors, rural households, and low-income residents.