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Onstar Navigation System to Deliver In-Car Spam
Posted by
chrisd
on Sat Nov 17, 2001 03:51 PM
from the key-reasons-not-to-use-onstar dept.
from the key-reasons-not-to-use-onstar dept.
pneuma_66 writes: "According to the New York Times (Free reg, don't cha know) navigation systems, like OnStar, are planning to deliver ads based on the car's location. For example, the system will 'notify' the driver of sales in nearby stores. The vp of OnStar says "The privacy and the confidentiality of our subscribers are of the utmost importance", well lets see how the big companies play with this new wealth of information."
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Onstar Navigation System to Deliver In-Car Spam
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Well Well Spam even while travelling! (Score:3, Funny)
Isnt there any end to this spamfest?
Moderation Totals: Funny=+1 Insightful=+1 SpamComplaint=-1
I get enough spam from these people as it is (Score:3, Insightful)
Online spam in the car? Ouch
This will last right up until the first accident (Score:5, Interesting)
So when the bicyclist sues you, and you in turn pin it on OnStar, that's when this shit will be nipped in the bud.
RTFA (Score:2, Insightful)
will that even work... (Score:2, Insightful)
Now something more realistic (if it isnt there already) would be having the system allow a user to query information about nearby hotels, malls, restaurants, etc.
Onstar Navigation System to Deliver In-Car Spam (Score:1)
This is stupid. (Score:2, Insightful)
I read something in Analog SF recently that involved a household robot that you could get for free, in exchange for having it spout ads all the time. ("You are out of window cleaning fluid. I suggest you buy Windex! Streak free cleaning bla bla bla...") Maybe if they gave you the OnStar service free, or at a reduced rate, the incar ads wouldn't be so bad... but even then, this is kind of a bad idea.
We'll see how the market likes this.
OMG (Score:1)
Pay them, and STILL get spam? (Score:3, Funny)
They're *already* charging people something like $399/yr, in addition to the stuff being installed on your vehicle,and NOW they're going to try throwing ADVERTISEMENTS at you?
Screw *that* - I'll just drive around with my happy Garmin eTrex GPS unit. At least it doesn't feel the need to inform me of a sale at Macy's.
On the flip side, Onstar really CAN find most anything. Our crazy friend Bill called Onstar and asked "Where's the nearest tittie bar?" and we had the answer within seconds. Gotta love that kind of service.
no pop-ups? (Score:1)
Let's see here... (Score:3, Funny)
This might not be all bad... take an example scenario for instance:
1. VA Linux, err... Systems... err, whatever they are nowaways sells all customer information on every
2. Geeks everywhere are suddenly constantly notified (in that pleasant feminine voice) of valuable chances to spend their money:
- "There is a strip club off to your left. Those women like geeks."
- "Adult video store just around the corner!"
- "That iMac girl is real, and she's giving out table dances at the Fun Club downtown at eight o'clock!"
- "Your boss just installed Windows XP across the company network. Your BSD server is gone. Wouldn't you like to purchase a firearm at Ed's Discount Sawn-offs tonight?"
The possibilities are limitless.If done right, it might actually be useful (Score:1)
I too have a knee-jerk reaction to advertising, however I think I would love to have such a service done right, and delivered into my car. I don't know about you, but I think that being in an unknown area and getting notified of nearby restaurants/shops/whatever is kinda neat.
Don't forget advertising's original goal: to get the word out about products.
We finally have it! (Score:3, Insightful)
It will work... (Score:1)
Let me explain why. Right now there is a certain amount of noise, much like a radio. But now imagine a radio that can custom tailor information based on your location.
I have a GPS system in my car and I LOVE IT!!! I never have to read another map. And in Europe the GPS system is REALLY accurate. What I would love to do is tell my system that I am interested in buying something in the next week. And if I drive past a store that has that something tell me. Or if I need that something right away tell me. The point is that I would really like this even though it is spam.
I think the difference with this spam and other spam is that this is pin point spam that may actually be relevant on the spur of the moment.
AOL/OnStar collaboration (Score:3, Funny)
Drive by Harvard University... Get your PhD degree!
Drive by the bank... Make $$$ Fast!
Drive by the swimming pool... Get wet pussy now!
Thanks to OnStar and AOL, my daily commute is finally going to become fun again!
How's this different from radio? (Score:3, Insightful)
A Database to Snoop With? (Score:4, Insightful)
Supposing OnStar can track where your car is, can't it also track acceleration and velocity and all that? I mean, supposing there's a sale at a Bob's Stores. It flashes the Ad.
Now, supposing you slow down and turn into the Bob's Stores parking lot. OnStar, technically, could save this information as specific to your vehicle. An entry in their big database that says "Customer 84392 will respond to advertising in this catagory."
What it all seems like is one big cyber-snoop service, tracking where you really are and advertising towards your patterns. A waste of car battery just like the new limewire ads are a waste of processing power.
Now, OnStar could say they won't do this, but you know it'll happen. It's a perfect advertising scheme. They'd know exactly what kind of driver and shopper you were dependant on what stores and advertisements you listened to and responded to.
Ieshan
Predictor at Large
Driving By Spam... (Score:5, Funny)
Oh please OnStar gods help me!
"Hello, OnStar BOFH here"
Yeah, I'm lost, I'm trying to find 1234 Bovine...
"No Problem Sir..."
""
"Up on your right there is a WalMart, do you see it?"
Uh, yeah, sure... but what...
"Pull into the parking lot so I might give you some indepth instructional proceedures."
OK...
"WalMart is having a special on Remington Pump Shotguns, they normally retail for..."
Wait, I need to get to...
"Sure, proceed north for 3 miles and I'll alert you when you reach THAT destination."
"On your right is a StarBucks giving a special discount to OnStar Customers!"
I really really need to get to 1234 bovine...
There is a really important meeting that I must attend, if I don't make it, it could mean the end of my career and all dreams!
"Oh that sounds important..."
""
""
Um, sir, this looks like the same walmart I was at an hour ago. My god, the meeting is over... I'm ruined! What is your problem!
"You've reached WalMart, home of the Wally arsenal collection! Your profile suggests this would be perfect"
AAAAARGG!
How much were those shotguns?
Onstar Navigation System to Deliver in-Car Spam (Score:1)
Certainly opens a few possible 'revenue opportunities' for those in the advertising sector. Whether it will catch on is another matter. From a commercial standpoint it's great to advertise to those most likely to buy from you (and if they are nearby, so much the better).
However it's going to be difficult to sell advertising space to reach, lets say, the one unfortunate bastard in the whole state who has bought Onstar and happens to pass by everyday as he leaves his house...
And anyway, as a private individual, I abhor the idea of yet more corporate 'throat-stuffing' as I go about my daily business.
They had that on Knight Rider (Score:3, Funny)
.
K.I.T. Michael, there's a 40% discount sale at the "Spank Your Pants" Adult Bookstore in that strip mall to the right.
M. Knight Excellent Kit! Go to "pursuit" mode.
My ad... (Score:1)
Run in fear! Buy Tickets! It's Harry Potter's box office. [lostbrain.com]
tcd004
'adult' stores (Score:1)
Great sign me up! (Score:2)
If I had one of these things in my car, I would probably rip it out with my own bare hands! How intrusive can you get! With email you can just ignore it or click on it and delete it. But with verbal harassment's
I remember not too long ago that you can have your access to the internet could be terminated for spamming. You could be flamed or kicked out of a newsgroup for spamming only a single spam ad. Seriously. Spamming was very bad. Just ask any old timer. The internet and especially the newsgroups section of it were created for schools and institutions to share and exchange ideas and to promote learning. Today its being banned from schools thanks to porn spams. I was on dejanews recently and I saw actual pedophile spam ads. If I had kids I definitely would not want them to log on to the newsgroups today. What a shame.
On a sidenote... (Score:1)
- sending spam via SMS to cellular phones is illegal (strange: the sender aka spammer will pay the bill)
- sending spam via e-mail is legal (here the innocent receiver has to pay the BIG part of the bandwith involved)
- persistent cookies are illegal (only session cookies are allowed)
- nothing about spyware (as if it were less intrusive than cookies!!!)
More here: Heise Online [heise.de]long live our clueless politicians!
ms
First reaction (Score:2)
My second reaction, upon seeing it is opt-in, is who's stupid enough to sign up for this?
Re:First reaction (Score:4, Interesting)
My second reaction, upon seeing it is opt-in, is who's stupid enough to sign up for this?
The yellow pages is opt-in advertising, but people still use it every day to find out the locations of certain types of stores. All they have to do is get a large enough number of stores to participate so that I can say "Onstar, where is the nearest pizza place. Place an order for a large pepperoni pie.", and there will be plent of people signing up for it. Hell, I'd probably consider signing up for it, if it was free like the yellow pages.
Too weird (Score:2, Interesting)
So on the one hand we are discouraged to use the device then driving around, and to only look it at to get directions, but now the device is going to be advertising junk - trying to get our attention?
Seems like a liable case waiting to happen, unless it only displays spam when the vehicle is detected to be stationary (which would make the spam low volume->not spam).
Yea but... (Score:1)
No? Then I ain't stoppin in the middle of town.
Didn't one commercial have (Score:1)
Duh-nun-nunna-duh-nuh-nunna BAT SPAM!!!
Spam? (Score:1)
It's "targetted advertising."
Information you can use! (Score:4, Funny)
And you HAVE to buy it. (Score:2)
Hey my radio does that too! (Score:1)
Of course for some reason the radio stations don't seem to need to track my every movement, or make me pay to recieve their ads, but hey this is progress!
free onstar, yay! (Score:1)
i cant tell you how badly this sits with me...
What's the benifit to the consumer? (Score:2)
Will the price of OnStar be lower because of this? Or will this end up being another thing like cable, where you pay an enourmous amount of money for something that used to be done for free to the enduser, but now you pay AND get commercials.
simple solution (Score:3, Interesting)
There are several Car computing/navigation systems out there. Hell if you want one that is cheap but the first one out there buy an autopc off of ebay. (Dont pay any more than $600.00 for a new one with gps and nav... I've seen them at the "super deals that cost $5.00 to get in" around here for $550.00 with software.)
The biggest problem with most of these navigation systems is that they use the really crappy maps from navtech corperation.. They make the worst map database on the planet... if the city is below 1,000,000 in population it isn't on the disc. and errors will stay there for years before they fix them.
The best nav-system I saw was a Q-pc car computing platform running linux and then running delorme with wine... it rocked, and the 4 year old disc database was perfectly useable if you were interested in addresses or routes...
only problem is that the Q-pc with display is about $3000.00.... ICK... anyone have a nice 4.5 inch 800X600 TFT lcd that can withstand -60degF and has touchscreen? I'll design the vehicle mounted computer.
Every system can be hacked... (Score:1)
Now suppose I were to intercept that stream. I've always been able to find out data about your car from the DMV (tag #s, VIN, etc). I could then filter that stream for YOUR car, and know where you are at all times. Perhaps I could track you, and notice that you go down a country road everyday on the way to work.
It is a known method of the Mafia to kill people by placing a bomb in a road, and blowing up your car. Now, I could use that data stream to set up my device in a pothole on that country road without ever following you. Nobody ever sees me. I arm the mine with an RF link when you get near it, and it's all over.
In other news... (Score:2, Informative)
OnStar - has a 70% NON-renwal rate... (Score:1, Redundant)
I know I won't - it's cute, but not worth the $$. They want $0.50/min for cell phone use on top of the annual fee! The GPS data is only available to the call center and the thing can't even set the time in the car!
This debacle was obviously created by a Marketing committe.
Not to be a Luddite, but... (Score:3, Interesting)
...this just confirms that "a map" may be the best navigation system out there, if only because it's quiet.
And "a book" may be the best way to read a book, because you can carry it with you and read it wherever, even without violating the law.
What I'm afraid of is the day where you can't get 99% of the books in paper, and where cars come with always-on navigation and "security monitoring" systems which blare ads at you without your ability to stop it.
I'm not afraid of technology. I'm afraid of the dunderheads we have running our world, and what they will do with technology (or anything else).
-Rob
Throw that junk in the garbage. (Score:2)
Well, you know what I'm gonna do, right? If I ever get a car with On Star, that thing is coming off. Even before the smog stuff.
How it works (Score:2, Interesting)
First Onstar uses the car's speakers. It stops the radio feed then the Onstar operator can speak to you through them. I don't think GM will brake into the radio signal just to send an add, sense this will only piss off paying customers. You have to pay for Onstar. The first year is free but after that it's a subscription.
Now how it works. It has 3 parts a GPS sender, a cell phone receiver, and a control module. The GPS sensor records the car's position. The control module calls the Onstar center every 10 minutes if memory serves. It will also send messages such as the air bag has gone off and the operator can call you assuming you still have power. There are also blue Onstar and red emergency buttons you can press to initiate a call.
Now there is a lot of Big Brother things that can be done with this system but I don?t think Spam is one that GM would stoop to. However I wouldn?t do anything illegal in an Onstar equipped vehicle.
Very misleading write-up (Score:5, Insightful)
Onstar is considering putting ads that are related to their content, such as ads for a brokerage if you're getting stock quotes. That's pretty far from 'in-car spam' based on tracking your location.
The only thing in the article that resembles this is the 'gas station locator' by Wingcast, a service which hasn't even been launched yet. It would notify you when your car runs low on gas, and give you directions to gas stations. It's a useful feature, and I'm sure you'll have to sign up for it before they send you gas station ads.
Personally I'd object to ads mixed in with a service that I paid good money for, even if they're not based on your location. For a few hundred dollars a year, I expect a service that's free of annoyances. A gas station locator isn't an annoyance, it's a feature.
Pushing (Score:3, Informative)
It will get much worse. You know that networked refrigerator they keep telling us is going to come? It too will have ads.
Free software has ads. Spending on advertising is going down as people become trained to ignore them. Just 10 years ago there where 2 less minutes of commercials per 30 minutes of programming. You now see 6 times the number of ads you did 10 years ago (sorry can't think of the source).
Ads are getting more intrusive by the day. Remember when you would get your receipt and it would have coupons on the back? Those are too easy to tune out. Now you get a separate piece of paper with coupons on it.
You used to buy something and it would come with a free gift. That free gift has turned into a discount somewhere else. More advertising.
When will this change? It won't. What can you do to avoid all of this? Nothing. Well nothing unless you live like I do, which is not recommended.
o Text based browser.
o No pager
o No cell phone
o TV is not plugged in
o no VCR
o no DVD
o Listen to NPR, the ads here are even getting an out of hand for "commercial free programming"
o don't own a car
You see fewer ads on the bus because you can bury your head in a book and not have you eyes locked on the road where all those billboards, A-frame signs, and faux-hot-air balloons are.
o Don't shop at the big stores. Hit the thrift stores and antique stores.
o Eat at mom and pop places and not places with BigThemePark adverts on the tray liners, YBotherBox adds on the drinks and movie tie ins on the to go bags.
o and the list goes on.
To explain, no there is too much, let me sum up: This should come as no surprise.
How companies will use the info? (Score:1)
TellMe has ads now (Score:2)
TellMe also offers movie tickets via Fandango, which in my experience has something go wrong in almost every transaction. (Today: six minutes of voice interaction and credit card entry leads to "an unexpected error occured, transferring you to customer service... wait time at least ten minutes...").
I think the challenge of the post-Internet era is to re-implement the better ideas so that they don't suck.
Antique Pentium Laptop + GPS = ad-free nav system (Score:1)
I work for OnStar (Score:1)
I work them and know exactly what they do with the vehicle and the capabilities of the OnStar system from the telephony, database, and internet connectivity and can say with some degree of certainty without even reading this article that this is 99% BULLSHIT in it's purest form.
Yes, they can do funky stuff with locating the vehicle and tracking speed, direction, blah blah blah... But this can only be done when the driver asks for it. The code simply does not exist to be able to initiate this. The proof is in the large number of requests we get to locate some drug dealers car by the local Enforcement Agency and we have to decline the offer. We get multiple supeona's every day on this.
As for spam in the vehicle... The technology isn't practical at this point in time. Could it be done, everything *could* be done eventually. But to track someone's location and pump them with ads is not a realistic technology for years to come. By then, who knows what the ethics or business rules will be.
This article sucks! I think we should be more paranoid about the other problems we have with technology today. This is merely a pathetic diversion. And no, I am not going to get a bonus for doing the 'corporate shill' think.
I could give a twip less about any of this, it's just that I *know* what's going on and am sick of the Chicken Little stories that are running around in the news media. Do you realized I don't take sugar doughnuts into work because they might leave behind a "mysterious white powder"? bleah!
Spam from the sky (Score:1)
Re:What about the monthly fee? (Score:1)
Re:Car Talk (Score:1)