Bluejacking in the USA

I saw my first instance of bluejacking (i.e. using Bluetooth technology to send unsolicited advertising messages) today. It's peculiar, but Bluetooth hasn't caught on state-side like it has in, for example, Europe. You could probably rationalize reasons-- such as concerns about privacy and security, etc.-- but I think the truth is most people here buy consumer electronic devices for status, rather than actual function. They never read the manual in its entirety to learn all the features of their products.

But, I digress.

So, I'm at the food court in Springfield Mall in Northern Virginia, and there's this National Guard poster in one of the kiosks telling people to turn on their Bluetooth and set their devices for autodiscovery. My current cell phone doesn't have Bluetooth support, but I expect if I had, I would have received some URL to their recruiting site.

On the one hand, I'm glad to see that someone out there is at least aware of Bluetooth and making use of it. On the other hand, I was disappointed with the overall implementation. I'm not even talking about the necessity of the poster to let people know the Bluetooth service was available (though it is kind of laughable, I have to admit). The local mall management could have made outstanding use of the Bluetooth technology-- with links to promotional events, maps in case people get lost, information about the mall's hours of operations, weather conditions, movie times, the location of the lost and found, etc.

So much possibility exists-- and instead, we get adverts for the National Guard. (Nothing against the National Guard, mind you. I think they perform a wonderful service for our country.)

It's just like buying the deluxe cable TV package from your local cable company and discovering that 20 of the channels are all shameless self-promotional channels. (Hello, we're already subscribing to the service-- why are you subjecting us to advertising on channels that could be used for educational or entertainment programming instead?)

If/when I get my Personal Area Network up and running, it's going to be a hell of a lot cooler and more valuable than just advertising. I don't know exactly what I will offer, but if all I can think of to say is: "Come join our team!" then I'm hanging it up before I even get started.

They actually have programs for Bluetooth enabled devices that let users declare what their hobbies and interests are-- and when they wander into close proximity of someone else with a similarly equipped/enabled Bluetooth device, the programs compare interests and hobbies. If they find a significant degree of matching, the programs alert the users to the other person's presence. (I can't help but think of Dr. Who and how the TARDIS automatically translates all the various written and spoken languages from around the universe for travelling companions via telepathic interface. Remarkably powerful and convenient, yet so subtle that you forget it's there.)