Once again this year, Santa Claus is in high demand. But it is not necessary to go through premium rate numbers to reach him because there are free ways to contact him, and even see him on WhatsApp!
Unsurprisingly, the most searched phone number at the end of December is Santa Claus. Because even if the children – young or old… – don’t have the chance to meet him at the foot of a Christmas tree, in front of a fireplace or in a shopping centre, nothing is lost! Indeed, there are many numbers, applications or websites that allow you to contact the famous bearded gentleman. The opportunity for the children to tell him about their list of gifts and to promise him that they have been very good – no need to lie! The problem is that many phone numbers are surcharged and some videos are chargeable – sometimes up to 20 euros! Fortunately, the magic of Christmas is not completely extinguished, you just need to know where to look! Because there are several really free solutions to reach Santa Claus… and even see him on video!
Thus, this year again, Bouygues Telecom is back with its successful operation #AllôPapaNoël for the fourth consecutive time. To be able to talk to the big red man, nothing could be simpler! Santa Claus having become hyper connected, all you have to do is write to him on WhatsApp at 06 25 12 25 12 – the number is not the same as last year – to receive a personalized video – and not pre-recorded. A free service accessible to everyone, including those who are not with the operator. In the same spirit, a father has set up an answering machine for his daughter so that she can leave a message for the big red man. Given its success, the number was extended to all children. Here’s something to wait for New Year’s Eve!
To receive a fully personalized video from Santa Claus, go to the WhatsApp application and send a message to 06 25 12 25 12. You must write a text that the red man will declaim, indicating details that the child – or the adult – is the only one to know, such as his first name, that of one of his relatives, the list of gifts he would like to receive, the good things – or the nonsense – he has done during the year… A few seconds later – it may take a little longer if the servers are too busy – you will receive a video in the WhatsApp conversation in which Santa Claus will recite the text you sent him from his office, the mail room, the gift factory, his living room, or even in front of his sleigh. As you can receive up to 15 messages per WhatsApp account, you can even trick the child into believing that the old gentleman is watching him carefully before the holidays – that will teach him to do silly things! The lucky ones may even have the chance to meet Mrs. Claus and win many gifts. Something to please the little ones, but also have fun with friends by sending them a funny message!
But behind a simple video actually hides a huge amount of work, which required technological prowess. Bouygues Telecom had to ask the digital studio BETC Fullsix to create algorithms especially for the occasion. They then combined them with text-to-speech technology from the company Voxygen. To put it simply, an artificial intelligence (AI) performs linguistic analysis of the text to understand how the words should be pronounced, then renders the audio in real time from a digital voice. Moreover, creating this voice required the recording of a specific lexical field by a real actor. The goal is to cover as many sounds of the French language as possible and expressions specific to the language of Santa Claus. It is from these recordings that the AI created a model of the voice of the famous red man. Yes, that’s also the magic of Christmas!
It is also possible to contact Santa Claus directly on the voicemail of his telephone by dialing 04 22 52 10 10. The child then falls on an answering machine where the old bearded man explains to him that he had to leave to go to the Christmas village to get new boots from the shoemaker, buy cakes and milk or even prepare presents with leprechauns. The little blond head only has to leave him his first name and his list of desired gifts while promising him to have been very good. Nothing revolutionary but it remains effective, especially when you know the little story behind it, since it was a man named Gilles Sauvaire, a telephone engineer on the Côte d’Azur and father of two children, who created this answering machine in 2013 for his daughter.
Portable Santa Claus (PNP) is another nice alternative since this service allows you to obtain a free personalized video. Just go to the website and enter the first name and date of birth of the child, attach a photograph and indicate one of his small peculiarities among those proposed in the list (has the most beautiful smile in the world, has magnificent hair, etc. .). A free video is then created from this information, in which Santa Claus consults his big book of all the children in the world before wishing the child happy holidays! It is possible to have more content, such as mini-movies, but then you have to checkout.
