Hi, and welcome back to Legal Geek. This week, we discuss a new technology for retailers that invokes serious privacy concerns that you should know about.
Going back to as early as 2013, the National Retail Federation's annual trade show has featured companies developing consumer monitoring technologies to try and make brick-and-mortar retailers remain competitive with online commerce. These technologies are based around cameras that image a consumer in a store and then offer targeted advertisements and offers based on the demographics observed of the consumer.
This branch of store technology hit another level a few weeks ago in the 2019 show, as at least one company debuted smart shelves that use camera to detect not just the age and gender of a nearby consumer, but also a mood of that consumer. This information can be used to gauge consumer reaction to a product on the shelf or an advertisement panel on the shelf, with the end goal being delivery of tailored advertisements at the point of sale that are most effective at leading to purchases. If this sounds like your experience online, it is because that's precisely what these companies are modeling the technology from, just in an in-person context.
Indeed, some major retailers are already testing smart camera or lenses on store shelves. Walgreens has a handful of locations where the beverage coolers have display screens rather than glass across the front, with cameras mounted on board to detect where a consumer is directing his or her attention. A little closer to yours truly, the grocery store chain Kroger has installed test camera units on store shelves in Seattle and Cincinnati suburbs to detect age and gender of shoppers. So in the future, you may not only be pictured by security cameras in stores protecting against thieves, but also by targeted advertising devices trying to entice you to buy certain products based on your demographics or mood. If that sounds a bit creepy to you, just know that most privacy law experts agree.
But the retail industry is struggling to keep up with online sellers who have the advantages of tailored ads and the Internet, and so don't be surprised if such technologies become commonplace in major retailers in the next few years. It will be critical for retailers and shops to be open and honest about these systems as they are adopted so that consumers with privacy concerns can make an informed choice about whether they subject themselves to the new monitoring technology. One might say it's a brave new world in retail, but we don't want to get too 1984 on you.
This branch of store technology hit another level a few weeks ago in the 2019 show, as at least one company debuted smart shelves that use camera to detect not just the age and gender of a nearby consumer, but also a mood of that consumer. This information can be used to gauge consumer reaction to a product on the shelf or an advertisement panel on the shelf, with the end goal being delivery of tailored advertisements at the point of sale that are most effective at leading to purchases. If this sounds like your experience online, it is because that's precisely what these companies are modeling the technology from, just in an in-person context.
Indeed, some major retailers are already testing smart camera or lenses on store shelves. Walgreens has a handful of locations where the beverage coolers have display screens rather than glass across the front, with cameras mounted on board to detect where a consumer is directing his or her attention. A little closer to yours truly, the grocery store chain Kroger has installed test camera units on store shelves in Seattle and Cincinnati suburbs to detect age and gender of shoppers. So in the future, you may not only be pictured by security cameras in stores protecting against thieves, but also by targeted advertising devices trying to entice you to buy certain products based on your demographics or mood. If that sounds a bit creepy to you, just know that most privacy law experts agree.
But the retail industry is struggling to keep up with online sellers who have the advantages of tailored ads and the Internet, and so don't be surprised if such technologies become commonplace in major retailers in the next few years. It will be critical for retailers and shops to be open and honest about these systems as they are adopted so that consumers with privacy concerns can make an informed choice about whether they subject themselves to the new monitoring technology. One might say it's a brave new world in retail, but we don't want to get too 1984 on you.
The Bottom Line is: just like when mega chains like Wal-Mart challenged the existence of many local mom-and-pop stores in the last couple decades, the in-person retail space is once again challenged to adapt or be left behind by online commerce. We will see how far retailers and tech companies can go before privacy advocates and the government step in to limit invasions of consumers' privacy, and it shapes up to make a potential interesting legal battlefield for the future. Now, excuse me while I go figure out how to invent an in-person ad blocker to contest these targeted advertising schemes.
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