Ads That Watch Their Audience

TruMedia Technologies and Studio IMC have developed technology that enables electronic advertisements to evaluate the age and gender of their audiences and track how long individuals are watching these ads. The technology utilizes small sensors or cameras that are embedded in or around video screens in combination with facial recognition software that manufacturers claim can accurately determine gender 85 to 90 percent of the time. Age is more difficult to predict and for the time being at least, falls into broader categorizations – child, teen, adult, senior – with a higher margin of error.

While the industry is still in its infancy, advertisers are starting to catch on, lured by the ability to measure the effectiveness of their ads in reaching a target demographic. The further applications of this technology allow advertisers a means of creating a tailored ad experience that can seemingly be changed on the fly depending on the person watching. Imagine a cosmetics commercial cutting to the latest brand of power tool as an adult male steps in front of the monitor and our Sci-Fi futures are being realized as we speak.

This worries some privacy advocates who feel this new technology smacks of Big Brother pervasiveness and for good reason, considering that most viewers won’t even be aware that they’re being watched. The makers, however, insist the technology is innocuous and assure that none of the information being gathered is stored for longer than the amount of time necessary to properly assess the audience. And while it remains to be seen how widely this service will be adopted, it’s a good reminder of our relationship to the advertisements that follow us throughout our daily lives. If they’re going to be observing us then perhaps we need to be holding them a little more accountable for what exactly it is they’re trying to sell us. 

[via Newsweek]