Plod hopes Bluetooth messages will stem drinking
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Police in Edinburgh are to pester locals with Bluetooth messages asking them how they plan to get home, in the hope of making them think before getting behind the wheel drunk.
The news comes courtesy of The Scotsman, which reports that Bluetooth nodes will be placed near drinking hotspots (otherwise known as Scotland, in our experience) and transmit text and images to nearby phones. This would include the campaign message: "Who's taking you home tonight? Bus, taxi, police, paramedic?"
The campaign is aimed at 17 to 24-year-olds and the hope is that this demographic is more mobile-equipped than others, though one might imagine they're also more likely to have set their phones to non-discoverable mode before venturing out. Of course, the message won't be limited to those who've been drinking - anyone driving past and completely sober will be equally vulnerable to being distracted by an incoming message.
Drunken driving has been made socially unacceptable within many demographics, thanks to years of careful advertising, but figures are creeping up again among the old as well as the young. Christmas campaigns always target the youth - it's more politically expedient to blame young people, and they are more likely to get themselves killed behind the wheel while drunk.
What proportion of those drinking themselves to death in Edinburgh have their Bluetooth phones set to discoverable - and thus receptive to the message - remains to be seen, but it seems a cheap way of reminding people that Christmas is more fun with all of one's limbs intact. ®
COMMENTS
hands up...
anyone who leaves bluetooth on all the time?
nope, didn't think so. If i need it for something i switch it on, and back off afterwards (using the convienient timeout function that a lot of phones have), but, as i've not yet come across a reason to use bluetooth, it spends it's time swtitched off.
Pants down comms
This is just calling out for some wag to message fake police messages such as "Important Police information! Incident ahead; Park up NOW, all parking fees have been waived, do not keep tickets. You will be messaged when the incident has been cleared. Alternate routes are available through Craigmillar, Granton, Pilton and Burdiehouse."
And this works how?
It assumes that
1) People have BT on 24/7
2) People actually accept a random BT device to connect to their phone (unlikely)
Plus in my experience no one without an IT degree can get BT to work in the first place :-D
Perhaps if they spent the money on extra police? just a thought...
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