CST 373 Week 8

Scrapbook 8 - Commercials Triggering In-Home Voice-Activated Software Devices

Burger King’s new ad forces Google Home to advertise the Whopper by Jacob Kastrenakes of The Verge (PDF archive)

Summary

This week there was a lot of controversy concerning the following Burger King commercial, which triggers Google's "personal assistant" to retrieve information about a Burger King burger.



The advertisement uses the voice command "Ok Google, what is a Whopper burger?" to have a Google Home device or Android phone read the first line of the Wikipedia page for a whopper burger. Prior to the release of the ad campaign, the Wikipedia article's first line was changed to read "The Whopper is a burger, consisting of a flame-grilled patty made with 100 percent beef with no preservatives or fillers, topped with sliced tomatoes, onions, lettuce, pickles, ketchup, and mayonnaise, served on a sesame-seed bun." It appeared to be edited by Burger King's Marketing Chief. This commercial is the first to intentionally trigger one of these voice command devices.

Reason Chosen

We've seen a lot of reports concerning accidental triggers of these kinds of voice-activated devices. Most have been unintentional up until this point. I find this relevant because I own two Amazon Echo devices that work the same way. My boyfriend had a friend over and noticed the device on our side table. He triggered it by saying "Alexa, order me 100 units of toilet paper." I have purchased toilet paper through Amazon in the past and when I did so, I ordered a box of 48 rolls. Alexa quickly responded saying she was ordering 100 boxes and it was going to total at somewhere around $2,000. It's concerning that it can be that easy to order something so large from a device like this. The easy ordering feature has now been disabled on my devices.

Ethical Implications and Personal and Social Values at Stake

This advertisement initially seems innocent but can quickly spiral out of control. First, as mentioned in the article, Wikipedia pages can be edited by everyone and Google will blindly read out the first sentence, under the assumption that it is okay to read (based on Wikipedia community guidelines). However, the articles could be edited after the release of these products to say horrible things that may not be appropriate for the listeners. It could place a lot of people in various ethical issue territories.

Similar advertisements will likely arise in the future. My family tends to leave the television on for our pets when we leave. I can easily imagine a case where an advertisement causes one of these devices to order something unapproved by the owner. I feel as if the companies producing the commercials are actually hacking their viewers and not just the device. It places their audience in a vulnerable state.

Source Credibility

Founded in 2011 under the Vox Media umbrella, The Verge was formed as a multimedia company to focus on technology and how it is becoming more relevant and prominent in our everyday lives.

Jacob Kastrenakes has been working as a News Editor for The Verge since 2012.