Facial tracking gets advertisers salivating

Facial tracking gets advertisers salivating

The technology of facial detection is advancing so rapidly that you could soon be targeted by advertisers based on your facial reaction and emotions.

August 13, 2012 12:03 by M. Aldalou

The next generation of this system is expected to take the formula much further so what will be the next cornerstone for advertisers, you ask? The next step is detecting the emotions (through facial micro-expressions) of the audience and advertising to them accordingly. Yes, the facial detection will have the ability to read happiness, sadness, sickness or comfort and advertise directly to you by relating to your particular state of mind. Your very own personal therapist but more of a rip-off.

Again, if you’re thinking it stops at outdoor billboards and street advertising then you’re wrong as well because as we know, vending machines have taken their initial intended purpose to entirely new levels from serving the basic food items all the way to selling Gold Bars, rings, watches and many other luxuries that you would be better off buying at a store. Which brings us to Jell-O; having used this technology in their vending machines while running a campaign of ‘adult pudding’ in order to detect the faces of buyers, ensuring that only adults were the ones purchasing the pudding.(video below)

It’s all fine and dandy when the technology is used for simple marketing, awareness and the prevention of alcohol consumption by children but unfortunately Kipp is too cynical to believe it will end there. When the algorithms continue to get longer, the technology more advanced and the systems more enhanced then it would prove easier if we simply gave them our money.

A combination of subliminally intelligent advertising methods along with the detection of our exact mood and reaction topped up with the growing hunger of consumerism burning inside us? Forget about it, we don’t stand a chance.