Samsung System Tailors Ads To Its Audience 172
angry tapir writes "Samsung has developed an outdoor digital advertising system that tailors ads based on its audience. There are three main components of the system: an LCD display panel, a dual lens camera and a processing computer, which runs the company's proprietary facial recognition software. If the technology identifies several female members in a group, then it can target advertisements at them, for example. Even if the group is mixed, the technology can identify whether onlookers are children or adults. If they're adults then maybe a wine ad could run whereas an advertisement for toys might play for kids."
No no no no no! (Score:3, Insightful)
Re:No no no no no! (Score:5, Funny)
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"We've noticed that you could use some discreetly-wrapped male enhancement pills."
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There is no requirement to wear pants in public, and there is no reason to notify any authorities. Misinformation is not funny. It is sad.
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>Well, if you're not wearing pants in public perhaps it _would_ be a good idea if the proper authorities were notified?
I know we live in a rampant consumer culture, but I wasn't aware we'd gone as far as designating Calvin Klein or Victoria's Secret as 'proper authorities'.
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How so? :)
In civilized countries, it's not illegal, as long as you hide the private part on the front.
Yes you can run around butt-naked here. (Germany, just in case you wondered.) :/
Unfortunately you only see men doing it.
Re:No no no no no! (Score:5, Funny)
After RTFA (yes, I make semi-witty first posts before RTFA just because I can, sue me) I can only assume someone will post something about the pants being irrelevant because it's made for public outdoors advertisements.
If you are or were on the verge of making such a post, I would like to strongly urge you to reconsider who you're dealing with here.
Re:No no no no no! (Score:4, Funny)
+1 eerily prescient?
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...pants being irrelevant because it's made for public outdoors advertisements.
Dunno about you but I'd *definitely* not consider pants 'irrelevant' when outdoors and in public.
Re:No no no no no! (Score:5, Funny)
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Re:No no no no no! (Score:5, Funny)
If you're concerned that technology can determine whether you're wearing pants by seeing your face, you've got bigger problems than your privacy.
ProTip: The pants don't go on the head.
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Pfft! Next you will be telling us that the pencils don't go in the nose.
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This could go badly (Score:5, Funny)
If they're adults then maybe a wine ad could run whereas an advertisement for toys might play for kids
And if it's a mixed group of adults and kids, it shows an ad for drinking wine out of plastic sippy cups?
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http://www.tetrapak.com/us/packaging/food_categories/wine/pages/default.aspx [tetrapak.com]
http://www.slashfood.com/2008/05/17/would-you-drink-wine-from-a-juice-box/ [slashfood.com]
I'll wait here while you hide your kids.
There is something very cool about having tailored advertisements. Google's found a way to make it work, and in the AFK world there is evidence of commercial tailoring for sporting events like the SuperBowl. People who watch the SB for the ads (like reading Playboy for the nudes, I suppose) typically enjoy funny and uniq
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Tailoring ads for a specific audience has been the norm for a very long time, not just the Superbowl.
Finance and insurance during Sunday morning news shows, Coors during football, tampons during Oprah.
Its not that the audience is more suggestible, but you don't want to spend/waste ad money pointing to the wrong audience.
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"drinking wine out of plastic sippy cups"
You that's actually not a bad idea. I tend to spill a lot as I get more drunk. Sure I'll have no dignity but that happens anyways when I'm drunk. At least with this I won't have to wash wine stain out of my clothing.
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You assume that you'll still have your clothes when you get home.
Imagine the embarrasing tie-ins (Score:4, Interesting)
Say it recognizes specific types of people. Would you really want ads for adult dating sites popping up if it thought a bachlor was strolling by? Or it could detect "that time of the month" and started advertising feminine products. Or how about it pops up porn ads when it only senses adult males in the vicinity.
Re:Imagine the embarrasing tie-ins (Score:4, Insightful)
Of course, that depends on who the user of the technology (such as, advertisement agencies), not the technology itself. The technology simply detects who is looking at the billboard, and how old the person is. It's entirely up to the ad agency to show adult dating sites or whatsoever on the billboard.
Thus, I think the ad agencies will end up putting ads that aren't so offensive to any demographic, anyway. Unlike popups from the web, it's intended to be placed on public space.
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Thus, I think the ad agencies will end up putting ads that aren't so offensive to any demographic, anyway.
Certainly gender-targeted advertising, in the way they're thinking, seems like it may miss large numbers of potential customers:
For example, if the technology identifies several female members in a group, then a jewelry, cosmetic, or perfume ad could run, said Samsung. If it were males then shaving products or beer advertisements could be played.
Apparently, Samsung believes women don't like beer.
Then again, the GP apparently believes women don't watch porn:
Or how about it pops up porn ads when it only senses adult males in the vicinity.
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1) show 'em all simultaneously. problem? information overload - nobody pays attention to anything in particular, but everyone is annoyed. bad for advertiser, bad for consumer.
2) show 'em all one after the other (on a TV). consumers aren't as annoyed, but the chances of anyone
It'll be Door #3 (Score:2)
You have:
information overload - nobody pays attention to anything in particular, but everyone is annoyed. bad for advertiser, bad for consumer.
And:
...the chances of anyone seeing anything they're interested in are tiny. bad for advertiser => bad for the world...
Advertising is another business bubble that has yet to burst, it's just taking a really, really long time.
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If adult ads would pop up when males walk by, this would result in an infinite loop when displaying those ads will draw in more males, resulting in overcrowding the area.
I wonder who's going to be first to sue (Score:5, Interesting)
This sort of technology may be an advertiser's wet dream, but it's pretty screwed up.
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This is a way for people to get ads for products that they at least *might* be interested in, and help businesses keep advertising costs down by not showing ads to groups that wouldn't be interested.
Whenever people get scared of things I this, I chuckle and remember a story my grandfath
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Speaking of phones, I wish Samsung would tailor their phones to real world text usage. My old Nokias were snappy when it came to texting, but texting on Samsungs (from my budget model to the more expensive models my friends have) equals dropped characters and missed keystrokes.
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Magazines know EXACTLY who most of their subscribers are, they have the addresses. Ads target demographics, and magazines don't get that from knowing who gets their magazines (except by comparing addresses to census data), they do studies instead because they don't have the demographics for each subscriber, unless they fill out a survey. This is another method of gathering demographics. There is no face recognition pointing specifically back to you because the advertiser doesn't have your face i
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Aren't you trying to invent something new just because it happens electronically? Walk into any clothes store and the sales rep will suggest clothes that he will think fit you, which might be a complete mismatch. Remember that showing ads to people that aren't interested is a complete waste of time for both the advertiser and you. They'd love a customers that says "your ads suck, why can't you advertise about stuff I care about?" and ask "yes, please, how can we know what ads you want?" with $-signs in thei
A world without advertisement? (Score:2, Interesting)
I'd rather pick my laundry detergent based on the results of independent testing, than based on who advertises the most. Why doesn't the world work that way? Consumers would be much better off.
How long until... (Score:5, Insightful)
I can see this being a big waste of money that will hardly ever work correctly, and just being an annoying method of delivering ads when it is working.
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Re:How long until... (Score:4, Informative)
"As a service to our customers, the Digital Rights Management technology in our TV will disable the machine if it detects that our advertising technology has become inoperative."
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It might be able to detect that you've covered the lens with paint, but would it be able to tell if you hung a picture of the empty area in front of it?
Re:How long until... (Score:4, Insightful)
Ain't going to happen. How many CCTV camera lenses are painted over in the UK?
You're going to embarass yourself (Score:5, Insightful)
You'd think advertisers would have learned by now how to avoid embarassing themselves. Clearly, they have not. Every year there are advertisements that fail to account for cultural values, context, or placement, and wind up sending an unintended message. Sometimes it's hilarious, sometimes its tragic. You've all seen the jars of Gerber baby food, right? The one with the big baby face on the front? Turns out when they first tried to sell it in rural segments of Africa, it wouldn't sell -- like at all. Turns out that the majority of the population in those markets is illiterate and so the products contained pictures of what was inside the jars and boxes. Well, the locals thought Gerber was selling, achem... baby. Needless to say, the packaging was updated shortly thereafter.
Here's the problem with advertisements where people are aware they are being targetted: What if the machine makes a mistake? What if it identifies the 18 year old male who's captain of the football team with a couple of his female friends and the machine decides that there are three females in the party instead of two, and spits out an advertisement for tampons or makeup. Perhaps even doing an impromptu photoshop with their faces and a "before and after" shot, with directions to the nearest makeup counter? Well, he might need some coverup then... To hide his suddenly very flushed appearance.
The problem with mechanical identification of any physical trait in a human being is that it won't ever be 100%, because the meanings associated with those traits are context-dependent. That is to say, the correlations are the problem, and it's true whether it's a matter of sex, race, or age... And when people are aware they are being targeted by those factors, and especially when its misread, and very especially when others are aware of this -- it can have significant social reprecussions. In marketing, context and placement means a lot -- and the only thing saving people from taking it personally is the very fact that they know it's targeted impersonally. When that changes, marketers are going to be in for a real surprise.
Re:You're going to embarass yourself (Score:5, Funny)
What if it identifies the 18 year old male who's captain of the football team with a couple of his female friends and the machine decides that there are three females in the party instead of two, and spits out an advertisement for tampons or makeup.
What if that happens? Uhhh... it shows and ad for tampons or makeup. Hardly the end of the word. What is this dreamy football captain and his companions doing looking at the advertisement, anyway? Surely there's sodomy to be had, which is a greater priority than some electronic billboard.
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What if that happens? Uhhh... it shows and ad for tampons or makeup. Hardly the end of the word. What is this dreamy football captain and his companions doing looking at the advertisement, anyway? Surely there's sodomy to be had, which is a greater priority than some electronic billboard.
Yeah. Well, they're never content with just a display device. It'll have sound too. And if that doesn't work, it'll vibrate and have smoke come out of it too. Marketing is fighting a losing battle and so it is becoming ever-more aggressive in how it infiltrates our lives and tries to distinguish itself from all the other marketing. And the close proximity of these things means that after the average person passes them a few times, they'll be aware of the fact that they're being targeted specifically, becaus
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Marketing is fighting a losing battle
Say what? Marketing is doing just fine... probably better than ever.
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Say what? Marketing is doing just fine... probably better than ever.
Which explains why the most popular addon for Firefox is "Adblock Plus" and number 5 is "NoScript". A strange coincidence that Firefox' popularity went through the roof after this was released. Also, have you noticed how many people have switched to Netflix and dropped their cable TV subscription? Yet strangely, what are the top-rented items on Netflix? TV shows... on DVD. Why do you suppose that is? Could it be because they can skip the 20 minutes of advertisements per hour and the annoying popups every 3
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Society seems more consumer driven and "brand aware" than ever.
Bullshit: It melts in your mouth, not in your hand.
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OK, so what basis do you possibly have to think that consumerism has decreased, or for that matter, marketing-driven spending?
Well, there's this recession going on... not that it's related, but I'd definately call it a decrease in "consumerism" and "marketing-driven spending".
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Marketing is also a war of attrition of sorts. Beyond a certain points, it's mostly a big, black hole you have to plug with money, because your competitors are also doing it.
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I suppose if your intent is to work for a nonprofit that might be legitimate, but I don't think that's the idea running through most marketing majors' heads.
Most people who go into marketing do it for the same reason as anyone else who goes to college: They want to make money. And if you are good at it, you can make a LOT of money. Everyone has different strengths and weaknesses, and there's nothing wrong with marketing per-se. Afterall, people need to know about your business to get their business, right? The problem is... there's so much of it that there's been a loss of impact. This loss of impact has caused people to seek out ever more vulgar ways of recapt
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Most people who go into marketing do it for the same reason as anyone else who goes to college: They want to make money.
Everyone but law and business majors go to college so they will be able to do something they love doing. Law and business majors go to college so they will make a lot of money. Because they hate all each and every kind of work.
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Hey there smuggy know-it-all (Score:3, Informative)
http://www.snopes.com/business/market/babyfood.asp [snopes.com]
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Perhaps even doing an impromptu photoshop with their faces and a "before and after" shot, with directions to the nearest makeup counter? Well, he might need some coverup then... To hide his suddenly very flushed appearance.
I was thinking "perhaps they should ask the viewer whether they want to see a mock-up photoshop of them using the advertised product?" There is a computer driving the system, after all. And you know what? This Samsung gimmic + project natal == epic marketing win
Imagine the system asking you, "Hey! how would you like to see yourself on this hot Levi's? Nod or give a thumbs up for yes, shake your head or thumbs down for no". A lot of immature people would give it the finger or make some other rude gestures, w
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You're right about false identification. While targeted ads is a nice idea in theory, targeted ads will often overstep certain bounds that generic ads do not - with embarrassing results when they miss. Also, the mere knowledge that an ad is targeted will affect how the audience responds - "they think I'm like that?"
Sometimes, like when gmail points me to a fine purveyor of Torah scrolls, I am merely amused. Other times, it annoys me enough to block it (I dare say some 90% of the ads at boardgamegeek are for
They think they're so smart... (Score:4, Funny)
What happens when the midget convention comes into town, huh? What do you do THEN, smart guy? WHAT DO YOU DO THEN?
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Time to modify my tinfoil hat... (Score:2, Funny)
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I think the tinfoil mask will be a much better way of figuring out what ads to target at you....
Sorta Cool (Score:3, Insightful)
Truth is, a little harmless digital stereotyping never hurt anybody. I look forward to living in a future where the advertisements on the street are video screens and they adapt their message to who they think is walking by. That's the kind of world people wrote about in science fiction decades ago, or put into movies like Blade Runner. This kind of thing has been dreamed about for decades, and thanks to the hard work of thousands of people, is finally possible.
Sure, it's not really that "useful" a technological improvement...kind of evil almost...but it sure is cool.
Re:Sorta Cool (Score:5, Insightful)
Truth is, a little harmless digital stereotyping never hurt anybody. I look forward to living in a future where the advertisements on the street are video screens and they adapt their message to who they think is walking by.
A proud whore.
I look forward to a future where public spaces aren't blemished by the vulgarity of advertising, arenas and stadiums bear the name of the city and not the name of a corporation, bus benches are attractive places to sit, the notion of wearing clothing and accessories adorned with corporate logos is dismissed as absurd, and all of us can celebrate with pride the world we've made for ourselves.
Foolish notions? Perhaps. But the way I see it, better to aspire to something than wallow in the shamelessness of an idiocracy... oh, fuck it. Enjoy your electrolytes.
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It's not all that foolish a notion.
Society has been "owned" by many groups in the past. First it was tribal affiliation, then religious affiliation, then owned by a king, then owned by an industry.
It's not too far-fetched that just as we threw off the shackles of religious domination, and as we threw off the shackles of industrial domination, we will also be able to throw off the shackles of advertising domination. What was pervasive in society a hundred or a few hundred years ago has falle
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I look forward to living in a future where the advertisements on the street are video screens
Or you could just sin enough to get into Hell, which is what that sounds like.
Advertisements directed towards children = banned (Score:4, Interesting)
In Norway, advertisements directed towards children are banned on TV and radio. Unfortunately this is being circumvented by basing the broadcasting network abroad.
I just hope this type of advertising can be dealth with by modifying the laws. If not, maby a big hammer will do the trick.
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If not, maby a big hammer will do the trick.
Like the Apple 1984 ads?
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Disney, perhaps in anticipation of such laws elsewhere, or in response to consumer discontent, are already dealing with in their own way. No ads. But you see, there are Disney characters on that channel...ALL the time...
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The main argument I've seen is that it's a form of brainwashing, since young children are much more impressionable and susceptible to persuasion than older people are. Not specifically that it will force their parents to buy them a particular toy, but that it allows companies to try to mold future consumers to their liking.
Of course, even for adults advertising largely attempts to perform that sort of function---the idea that advertisements are good-faith attempts to inform potentially interested customers
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I believe that there was a study done that found something like 40-60% of all sales of children's stuff happened because of begging done by the children. The ad agencies even did studies on how to increase begging.
If you haven't seen it, the documentary The Corporation [archive.org] is very illuminating. It's rather leftist, but contains some very interesting information about how aggressively companies advertise to kids.
Muslim version? (Score:2)
So I guess they won't be marketing this in fundamentalist Islamic countries where the gals wear burqas?
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I wasn't trying to be serious. I guess I'll be keeping my day job for a while yet....
Gaming the system. (Score:2, Insightful)
One problem that i see, is that it can be very easy to game the system.
Let's say that the advertisers pay a fixed monthly payment. If I were an advertiser and my advertisement were run every time that three women are in front of the screen... well, I'd hire three actresses so that they stay in from of the screen: my ad would be shown lots of times, and adds of my competitors would never be shown.
If, on the contrary, the advertisers have to pay for each time his ad is shown, and my competitor's ad is sh
You must have money to waste. . . (Score:2)
"Let's say that the advertisers pay a fixed monthly payment. If I were an advertiser and my advertisement were run every time that three women are in front of the screen... well, I'd hire three actresses. . ."
Wow, that sounds expensive. Ok, here's an idea - if you want your ad shown continuously, just hire a traditional billboard/sign? You're really making things too complicated. The point of such an advertising system is to, on the one hand, reduce costs for you as the advertising client, while increasing
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I'm a white guy with a shaved head. (Score:5, Funny)
I really don't want this thing advertising bed sheets, wrestling, ammo and tractor pulls to me every time I walk by.
Looks good on paper... (Score:3, Funny)
But while this may look good on paper... remember: they will have to find something to replace those ads... and being a male between the ages of 18 and dead, you can be sure that every commercial break will be like Spike TV at 3am... An endless loop of Girls Gone Wild commercials occasionally separated by advertisements for erectile dysfunction prescriptions and the latest, amazing super-duper nutritional supplement that will help you drop 50 lbs of fat in 2 days, without exercising or changing your diet*!
* These statements have not been evaluated by the FDA. This product is not intended to diagnose, treat, cure, or actually do anything at all besides separate you from your money, fatty!
What a relief. (Score:2)
How to fool them (Score:4, Funny)
Wear a football top and a skirt.
Get your fancy dress party guests to walk by the signs.
Will it recognise the gender of naked people?
Dress as an alien (outer space alien, not a mere foreigner).
Suggest that a band of midgets and dwarfs stand in front of the sign.
Dress up in a kilt.
Gay pride parade.
Anyone and any uniform - especially monks and nuns (what do you sell someone who has taken a vow of poverty?)
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That should read "Anyone IN any uniform..."
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Of course if it ever got to the stage of recognising individuals, for men at least the simple remedy would to grow beards. Even with medium-term advances in tech it seems unlikely that facial recognition will work very well differentiating between bearded people.
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A big piece of expensive "nothing" of course!
Slogan: "More poverty, less money! -- iNothing, by Apple" (Who else could sell something worthless by putting a nice logo on it? ^^)
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I think there was someone in Adbusters who tried that a while back. Nothing(tm) - just what you need. Apparently lots of people called to ask what it was and where you could get it.
So no, you don't have to be Apple.
What if I don't WANT this? (Score:2)
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Oh, wait, in most places you get arrested for hiding your face
You can get arrested for being a Muslim?
Muslim women? (Score:2)
Not racist, not flamebait, just pointing out flaws.
Wait for it to advertize to a... (Score:2)
...dog as if it were a child. ...small woman with a stroller as if they were a dwarf with a dog, so that it looks like the woman were a dog. ...hairy hardcore ex-con biker with long hair as he were a black woman, trying to sell pantyhoses and high heels.
etc.
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Strange. Someone fixed the "Plain Old Text" and "Extrans" mixup I relied to for the last months/years. And replaced it by "HTML Formatted"??
The "..." should have gone to new lines.
"obey"? (Score:2)
Alarmist and hyperbolic: check!
Poor grasp of the issues: check!
Completely one-eyed assessment of the situation: check!
OK, the "obey" tag is cleared for use!
Overtargeting? Saturation? (Score:2)
Here is the reason this is going to be annoying: consider TV in general. Commercials on TV are already targeted, as far as targeting is possible. They guess "this type of person watches this type of channel at this time slot" and choose the ads based on that.
And thus we see the same damn marketing campaign over and over and over and over, and this is annoying as hell, because even if the targeting was right, the commercials themselves are still the jarring attention-grabbing things they always were, because
Great feedback potential (Score:2)
I think this would be a tremendous advantage by not immediately altering the content. If the system is capable of determining viewer attention (ie do they even look at the ad), then its a fantastic feedback mechanism. The ad agency can tell what ads are noticed and which are ignored. The second part of the equation of which ads engender brand recognition or result in an increase in sales is another hurdle.
Personally face recognition is a bit harder. Anyone have a cell phone? How long before the adverti
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Why would they warn him/her??