Giving Tuesday: Facebook, T-Mobile, Amazon rally for charitable causes

After you've snagged a giant TV, a new pressure cooker and a toy du jour on two of the year's busiest shopping days -- Black Friday and Cyber Monday -- you might want to kick some cash to a charitable cause on Giving Tuesday.

Now in its seventh year, Giving Tuesday takes place on the Tuesday after the US' Thanksgiving holiday. The idea is to provide a focal point for the giving season by encouraging people to donate their time and money to good causes as the year ends. 

And as you might imagine, big companies have been known to get involved. 

Here's what tech is doing this year:

• Facebook and PayPal: The social network and the payments company are partnering to match donations up to $7 million if you give through Facebook to US-based nonprofits on Giving Tuesday.
  
• T-Mobile: If you tweet using the hashtag #GivingOnUs, the carrier will donate 10 meals to nonprofit Feeding America. Customers can use the T-Mobile app as well to give up to 10 meals (at no cost to them) and get a chance to have the company donate up to $25, $100 or $500 to a charity of their choice. In addition, employees will get $27 to give to charity.
• Amazon: The online retail giant launched a way for customers to donate items to Toys for Tots via Alexa. Say "Alexa, donate to Toys for Tots," and the voice assistant will offer an item from the Toys for Tots Charity List that can be shipped directly to the nonprofit. Amazon said customers can donate through the end of the year, and it'll match donations toy for toy.

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