Brand

Google Glass causes a PR problem

Privacy talks are the order of the day at Google as we approach to the release of its long awaited new product, Google Glass.

The Silicon Valley corporation has taken note of people’s sentiments via social media, by means of the hashtag #ifihadglass, and the research has highlighted a general concern about the potential of facial recognition technology to undermine people’s privacy. Google has released a statement affirming no facial identification app is going to be allowed on Glass.

This move was widely applauded as the first PR-conscious move Google has made with Glass. In Forbes it had underpinned the extraordinariness of the statement, saying it is crucial to build trust with customers.

In fact, Forbes believes that Google is often deaf to criticism. An example being Google Buzz, the social network developed in 2011 and discontinued after only two months, when it was found that it users’ contacts were accessed without permission.

Developers of Google’s facial recognition app Lambda believe this is going to be a core feature of the device. Experts are also confident the ban of facial recognition is merely symbolic and only temporary because the Google recently issued a statement on G+, saying only: “we won’t be approving any facial recognition Glassware at this time”

Will Google Glass Terms of Service change? This creates an interesting discussion around Google PR strategy.