They see you when you're sleeping, they know when you're awake . . .
WhereWare Soon, hardware and software that track your location will be providing directions, offering shopping discounts, and aiding rescue workers—services that promise a windfall for ailing telecom carriers.
The idea is to make cell phones, personal digital assistants, and even fashion accessories capable of tracking their owners’ every movement—whether they’re outdoors, working on the 60th floor, or shopping in a basement arcade. Already, Japanese telecommunications company KDDI offers over 100 different location-based services using technology developed by wireless-equipment maker Qualcomm, from bracelets to let parents track their kids in the park, to cell phones that point the way to cheap noodle shops in Tokyo’s skyscraping Shinjyuku district.
ATT has it - they call it "friend finder." Oh, and it can be used to "save lives" -- like an electronic Lassie helping rescue Timmy when he fell down the well.
Hewlett-Packard’s “Websign” technology embeds Web pages in the landscape, enabling users to find information relevant to their locations.
I'm sure no one will ever think to include advertising on this.
Consumers will then be left with a set of technologies working together to ensure that someone—or some network—always knows where you are, what you are looking for, and where you need to end up. Think of it as a permission-based Big Brother—an older sibling with a very good sense of direction.
At a very base level this does not appeal to me. I already get complaints about not being instantaneously available to everyone all day and all night. [ha!] I leave my cell fone off because I bought the dam thing for my convenience. Same for my answerfone. [I imagine it would be different had I young children who needed watching over -- then I would be glad that the tech was available.]
If I don't want to hear from friends and family 24/7, I certainly don't want to hear from companies wanting me to buy their sh*t just because I'm in the neighborhood of their store. Include the information available to this kind of network from RFID tags embedded in every piece of "consumer goods," and there is way TMI** about me out there. It's likely that very soon it will seem quite old-fashioned to say, "If I want to buy something, I will seek the information. Until then - leave me the hell alone." I guess it's nice to know ahead of time what one will be maundering on about saying as an old coot.
Kids Younger people already compete to be the most knowledgeable about all the available products and services. Me? I guess I'm just piss-poor at being a consumer.
** TMI = too much information
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