21 March 2021
Vaccination passports, Instagram for kids, Google (again) and Tesla. Plus, Tinder cares and secluded is where we all want to be.
Headlines.
The move to ‘vaccination passports’ continues to gain traction, with Walmart joining the push. Joe Biden asks for an assessment of the ‘feasibility’ of digital vaccine passports and it’s Tesla’s turn to feel the wrath of Chinese privacy concerns.
‘Instagram for kids’ is confirmed on the company’s message board, and headlines continue about Google’s move to stop advertiser’s targeting ads based on people’s behaviour online.
In lighter news, Tinder shows care for it’s daters by offering them a free Covid-19 test and our dream of a more secluded world is revealed by property searches on Rightmove.
Sources:
NY Times: Walmart becomes largest US vaccine provider to join push for digital vaccination credentials
Fast Company: How to build a private, equitable vaccine passport that respect’s people’s privacy
Buzzfeed: Facebook is Building An Instagram for kids under the age of 13
Wired: Google and the Age of Privacy Theater
BBC News: How Covid has changed where we want to live
The Verge: China cracks down on use of Tesla vehicles, citing privacy concerns, Tinder is giving away free mail in Covid-19 tests
Perspective.
The question everyone is asking is: How to administer a global vaccine passport, accessible to many, whilst still maintaining trust and data protection. The question not enough are asking is: What happens to those who choose not to vaccinate? Will they be left to languish in the no-travel backwater, dreaming of far away places they will never travel to? Will a choice to vaccinate even exist in the next normal?
Facebook’s ‘Instagram for kids’ is billed as a move that will allow them to better protect this vulnerable, easily influenced group who are possibly already on Instagram. However there is no denying that this is a viable growth segment and marketers have long known that kids influence a great deal of purchases made in the household. How this ‘product’ will work with data legislation forbidding collection of data from those under the age of 16 remains to be seen.
It is now abundantly clear that Google will continue to serve adverts to People, however it will now hold the keys to who sees those ads, and the reasons as to why. It is still unclear how the People will benefit from this move, where the win is always personal data protected, and wanted ads that are relevant. For now, Google 1, Advertisers 0, People…?.
China’s concerns over Tesla’s always-on eyes have resulted in a ban for government employees - a strange move given the company worked with Chinese government to enter the market. Unsurprisingly, Tesla is a target in the ongoing China vs US chess game (and says its’ eyes have been shut where there are concerns). US, your move.
Finally, whilst I applaud Tinder for providing Covid-19 kits to users, signalling responsibility, I am somewhat baffled by the restriction to 500 kits, which for me makes it more of a stunt, than a real show of care. Rather be alone? Rightmove’s data confirms what we all already knew: we want a space to call our own, far from anybody else. Free to roam, mask-free (and naked if we choose). So, now might be the very best time to invest in that City, pied-a-terre for ‘investment purposes’ - but that you will surely return to in 12 months time.