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Philips Patents Technology to Force Ad Viewing

Posted by ryuzaki0 on from the pure-evil dept.

An anonymous reader writes "According to New Scientist, Philips has filed a patent for technology to force viewers to watch the ads in a program. Basically they plan to add extra flags to the Multimedia Home Platform that would stop controls from working until the ads are finished." From the article: "Philips' patent acknowledges that this may be 'greatly resented by viewers' who could initially think their equipment has gone wrong. So it suggests the new system could throw up a warning on screen when it is enforcing advert viewing. The patent also suggests that the system could offer viewers the chance to pay a fee interactively to go back to skipping adverts."

4 of 823 comments (clear)

  1. Re:Another patent will prevent this by CRCulver · · Score: 0, Offtopic

    Part of this system will be eye-instruments similar to the ones used in A Clockwork Orange that keep the lids of your eyes fully open and staring directly into the screen.

    If I recall correctly, all of those devices to keep young Alex strapped down were part of Kubrick's film version of A Clockwork Orange , but not part of Burgess' original novel, vastly superior to the film.

  2. Re:Another patent will prevent this by advocate_one · · Score: 1, Offtopic
    The future England presented in the novel is one where Soviet domination has succeeded by first appealing to youth.

    the future England is now... Tony Blair's England an absolute nightmare for decent law abiding folk as gangs of youths run rampage in the streets knowing there's an miniscule chance of ever being caught and if they are, they'll only get a slap on the wrist at most... the Police ignore crime happening in front of their own noses as it would require hours of paperwork for a caution at most... meanwhile they hammer ordinary folk for driving at 33 in a 30 zone... (that one's easy as they've got these marvelous cameras that never lie...)

    --
    Donald 'Duck' Dunn: We had a band powerful enough to turn goat piss into gasoline.
  3. Re:Another patent will prevent this by Golias · · Score: 0, Offtopic

    Kinda like The Matrix, only it was envisioned 2500 years ago. That, and Plato's _Republic_ doesn't have people floating in midair and doing cool ninja moves.

    Winner: The Matrix.

    --

    Information wants to be anthropomorphized.

  4. Re:Another patent will prevent this by OverflowingBitBucket · · Score: 0, Offtopic

    Of course, for a fee, advertisers can override your preferences and show you the ad anyway.

    Please mod parent up. This does seem the natural progression.