Usually, shopping off-line is usually more ad-free than shopping online. But this is changing, with ads coming in strange places like video screens at Gas Stations, Albertson’s, and so on. Google’s been using content targeted at users for some time, and now this is coming to offline ads too. Some unlikely retailers like Dunkin Donuts are installing facial recognition systems that change the ads shown, depending whether the viewer is male or female, and in what age range.
The Wall Street Journal says that Dunkin’ Donuts is experimenting with video screens that use facial recognition technology to figure out your age and gender. The screens then display ads targeted specifically to you.
Creepy!
Dunkin’ Donuts is also tailoring the cash register ads to your specific purchase. If you buy a breakfast sandwich, you can expect an ad prompting you to return “for a coffee break in the afternoon” to “try an oven-toasted pizza.” The system is already in place at two Buffalo, NY locations.
Read the full article here.
