Surveillance Cameras Used To Study Customer Behavior 126
An anonymous reader writes "Technology Review reports on a startup with software used by stores to track, count and log people captured by security cameras. Prism Skylab's technology can produce heatmaps showing where people went and produce other statistics that the company claims offer tracking and analytics like those used online for the real world. One use case is for businesses to correlate online promotions and deals — such as Groupon offers — with real world footfall and in-store behavior."
Re:soon: citizens with rfid to be tracked by every (Score:5, Insightful)
I think this story illustrates that the RFID is completely unnecessary.
The outrage... (Score:4, Insightful)
You got to admit it is pretty cool use of computer science....
Possible Abuse Pattern (Score:4, Insightful)
step 1: observe correlation: the more time people spend in your store, the more they buy
step 2: optimize placement of stuff so that people stay longer in store
step 3: profit!
side effect: waste time of peoples' time.
Re:The outrage... (Score:3, Insightful)
You got to admit it is pretty cool use of computer science....
No, we don't. I had the opportunity upon completion of my degree in computer science to go work for the NSA. I chose not to because I don't believe that's a "cool" use of my ability. Similarly, the work being done here is by people with dubious ethics.
I suppose that you'd think that malware is a "cool" use of computer science as well because of all the work and research that goes into producing it?
--Jeremy
Re:soon: citizens with rfid to be tracked by every (Score:4, Insightful)
You're complaining that he pronounced the acronym? That's a pretty common thing in English, at least in the last few decades.
Unless you say L-A-S-E-R, N-A-T-O, A-I-D-S and S-C-U-B-A, among others--and though I don't know you, let me say I officially doubt it--then you're really just judging somebody over his decision on where to draw the line between acronyms that should be pronounced and those that should be spelled out. Frankly I have no problem with pronouncing any acronym that pronounces smoothly. (Yes, Slashdotters, I typically pronounce "SQL" -- run in abject horror!)