Video Phones Won't Catch On Because They'll Uncover Liars

from the interesting-perspective... dept

Something of an odd prediction, suggesting that 3G video phones will never catch on because it will make it more difficult to lie about your location. I hadn't realized that so many people used their mobile phones as a way of lying about where they were. I would guess that there are plenty of other reasons why video phones might not catch on (perhaps, for the same reason that landline based video phones have never really caught on - people often feel uncomfortable knowing someone is watching them without being able to see them directly). I also wonder how many make their buying decisions based on their ability to use the technology to lie to people.
Hide this

Thank you for reading this Techdirt post. With so many things competing for everyone’s attention these days, we really appreciate you giving us your time. We work hard every day to put quality content out there for our community.

Techdirt is one of the few remaining truly independent media outlets. We do not have a giant corporation behind us, and we rely heavily on our community to support us, in an age when advertisers are increasingly uninterested in sponsoring small, independent sites — especially a site like ours that is unwilling to pull punches in its reporting and analysis.

While other websites have resorted to paywalls, registration requirements, and increasingly annoying/intrusive advertising, we have always kept Techdirt open and available to anyone. But in order to continue doing so, we need your support. We offer a variety of ways for our readers to support us, from direct donations to special subscriptions and cool merchandise — and every little bit helps. Thank you.

–The Techdirt Team


Reader Comments

Subscribe: RSS

View by: Time | Thread


  1. identicon
    Precision Blogger, 21 Jan 2004 @ 2:05pm

    "You were there" franchise chain

    I'm going to start a franchise business consisting of stores with fake props so that you can stand in the store and talk on your video phone, and look convincing about being somewhere else.

    The store will charge a modest fee to set up the props; a modest per minute cost for the call; and then monthly blackmail not to reveal you were using the store...

    link to this | view in thread ]

  2. identicon
    Director Mitch, 21 Jan 2004 @ 9:06pm

    Home Version

    You also need to sell a home version so married men can set one up at their girlfriend's house.

    link to this | view in thread ]


Follow Techdirt
Essential Reading
Techdirt Deals
Report this ad  |  Hide Techdirt ads
Techdirt Insider Discord

The latest chatter on the Techdirt Insider Discord channel...

Loading...
Recent Stories

This site, like most other sites on the web, uses cookies. For more information, see our privacy policy. Got it
Close

Email This

This feature is only available to registered users. Register or sign in to use it.