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Grocery Store "Smart Shelves" Will Identify Customers, Show Targeted Ads
cagraham writes "Snack company Mondelez International (maker of Oreos, Trident, Cadbury eggs) will introduce so-called 'smart shelves' into store checkout aisles beginning 2015. The shelves will use Microsoft's Kinect software, in addition to other tech, to identify shoppers age and sex, and will then use that info to deliver demographically tailored advertisements. The shelves will be able to track engagement, monitor how long customer's watch each ad, and offer discounts if a customer is considering a purchase (weight sensors will tell the machine if you pick up a product). Mondelez says the software will only use and collect aggregate data, and will not record any video or photos."
What's more likely to happen is that this will annoy the fuck out of me so much that I'll never return to that retailer again. And let the "smart shelf" figure out the reason why.
I have yet to use a self-checkout.
You see, I used to be a grocery checker, and I used to get a paycheck for doing that work. (I quit when I got a "real" job, but it got me through college.) When the stores decide to pay me (a 2% discount on everything I purchase through self-checkout would be nice), then I'll use the self-checkout. Until then, I'll wait in a long line, not buying their stale candy bars, and make their for-pay employees earn their paychecks (and keep their jobs).